Genuinely Disturbing Movies Discussion

[Cordy_Biddle]

"The Blair Witch Project" definitely disturbed me the first few times I watched it. In lots of ways the fake TV special "Curse of the Blair Witch" is even more unsettling.

To me at least, the first half plays like a comedy. Some of the scenes are freakin' hilarious, like when the map is lost.

[PixarFan2006]

I used to be bothered by Carrie mainly because of the eerie atmosphere it had. The same goes for several scenes in Poltergeist.

Neither Jason nor Chucky bothered me much as a kid. Freddy was a little creepy, but I do not ever recall him giving me nightmares.

Recently, I watched The Silence of the Lambs and it had a few disturbing (but not scary) scenes.

[Robertson]

Apparently, my mother tried to show me Mary Poppins several times as a child, and I never made it past the first few scenes with bawling. I don't know what was wrong with me, but I never saw the full film til I was fifteen or so.

[slave2moonlight]

"The Blair Witch Project" definitely disturbed me the first few times I watched it. In lots of ways the fake TV special "Curse of the Blair Witch" is even more unsettling.

To me at least, the first half plays like a comedy. Some of the scenes are freakin' hilarious, like when the map is lost.

I've always said the Curse of the Blair Witch was far superior to the actual film. LOVE that fake documentary!

[jpanimation]

I just saw the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre the other day for the first time and I can't express how disappointed I was. Having seen the remake a few years ago, one thing that stands out about the original is the complete lack of on-screen violence and the over-dramatization of just about everything (ridiculous close ups of hers eyes). Something terrible is happening and sometimes showing it in the simplest ways is the most effective (Tobe Hooper overdid a lot of what is in this movie and it made it more funny than terrifying, the same problem that plagued The Poltergeist among other things). This movie would be PG-13 is it came out today.

Franklin was annoying and made for some of the stupidest moments in the movie (falling down the hill when peeing in a cup, dumb reaction when hes getting cut with a knife, spitting with his tongue at his sister, whining about the keys and honking the horn, etc.). The thing I really liked about the remake is the silence of Leatherface and the threatening presence it omits (the wild dummy scream in the original is ridiculous).

What did I like in the original? The cheap grainy film for a realistic feel (similar to what Romaro did for Night of the Living Dead), this is a true story thing, and the lack of an extended family that was in the remake (his family killed any believability the remake had and the remake had a lot going for it).

Overall, I give it a 6/10

Doesn't quite live up to it's reputation but introduced some interesting concepts

[Lazario]

I just saw the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre the other day for the first time and I can't express how disappointed I was. Having seen the remake a few years ago, one thing that stands out about the original is the complete lack of on-screen violence and the over-dramatization of just about everything (ridiculous close ups of hers eyes). Something terrible is happening and sometimes showing it in the simplest ways is the most effective (Tobe Hooper overdid a lot of what is in this movie and it made it more funny than terrifying, the same problem that plagued The Poltergeist among other things). This movie would be PG-13 is it came out today.

Franklin was annoying and made for some of the stupidest moments in the movie (falling down the hill when peeing in a cup, dumb reaction when hes getting cut with a knife, spitting with his tongue at his sister, whining about the keys and honking the horn, etc.). The thing I really liked about the remake is the silence of Leatherface and the threatening presence it omits (the wild dummy scream in the original is ridiculous).

What did I like in the original? The cheap grainy film for a realistic feel (similar to what Romaro did for Night of the Living Dead), this is a true story thing, and the lack of an extended family that was in the remake (his family killed any believability the remake had and the remake had a lot going for it).

Overall, I give it a 6/10

Doesn't quite live up to it's reputation but introduced some interesting concepts

I promise you- it's a whole other experience at night, with the lights off, the 5.1 track cranked up, good speakers, and the Dark Sky remastered edition. We can't forget that almost all these movies got their reputations in theaters. Replicating that experience as best you can gives you a better end result. As for Franklin- he was supposed to be that annoying, and no, the audience weren't expected to find him to be a sympathetic character. This is all about tension and every scene, you're meant to feel uncomfortable. On that level, every last shot is masterful and feels intensely thought-out. Showing things "in the simplest ways" is not in the best interest of many of the greatest horror films of that era of filmmaking. The 1973 film is a tremendous document of unease and pure hellishness, done often from an elevated level of terror that reflects the psyche of the victims. Most notably, in the scene of Pam's shocked reaction to the room of bones and feathers. And Sally at the dinner table scene. The closeups, you'll notice, of things like eyes and such were done only after she pretty much started checking-out, mentally. It's fear and panic from the inside-out.

Unfortunately, a lot of younger horror viewers don't give this film the credit it deserves. Anything new comes out, delivers louder scenes of more graphic violence, and suddenly- the new flicks are better than their 1970's counterparts. The remake lacks craft, intelligence, and vision. At best- it's trendy, loud, and wannabe-gritty. Executed by a music video director ( ). Only the amateurs found it superior to the original film. One only needs to look at how high the accolades are for this film. It's recognized the world-over time and time again as one of the greatest horror films of all-time. It has been cited as the influence for 2 more of the greatest critically-acclaimed horror films of all-time; Alien and Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. William Friedkin (The Exorcist) and Steven Spielberg (two of the biggest, most important mainstream directors of the 1970's) are huge admirers of it.

More, from Wikipedia:

* Channel 4 called it "a triumph of style and atmosphere", and said The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is without doubt one of the most influential horror films of all time.
* The film was among TIME Magazine's top 25 horror films of all time.
* In 1990, the film was inducted into the Horror Hall of Fame, with Tobe Hooper accepting the award.
* New York City's Museum of Modern Art added the film to its permanent collection, validating its claim as legitimate, unconventional art.
* In a Total Film poll conducted in 2005, the film was selected as the greatest horror film of all time.
* Isabel Cristina Pinedo stated, "The horror genre must keep terror and comedy in tension if it is to successfully tread the thin line that separates it from terrorism and parody... this delicate balance is struck in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre in which the decaying corpse of Grandpa not only incorporates horrific and humorous effects, but actually uses one to exacerbate the other."
* Scott Von Doviak of Hick Flicks called it "one of the rare horror movies to make effective use of daylight, right from the gruesome opening shot of a decaying corpse splayed across a cemetery tombstone".
* The book, Contemporary North American Film Directors called the film "a disquieting inspection of rural insanity, more intricate and less bloodthirsty than the title might connote.”
* The film was placed 199th in Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 greatest motion pictures of all time.

Can anyone say the same for that brainless remake?

Just a supportive heads-up on a horror fact: it's Romero, not Romaro.

[jpanimation]

Executed by a music video director ( ).

Michael Bay's Texas Chainsaw Massacre is what the remake amounts to. We go from movies with substance (Alien) to movies that are all flash (AVP-R) when those kinds of directors get their hands on it. Although, the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre was pretty brainless but not music video brainless. I was just as disappointed with the remake, but it didn't have the good reputation, thats why I'm more disappointed with the original that was supposed to change the bad taste left in my mouth from the remake.

I see those early 70's films as important (Wes Craven's early work) but ultimately they just don't hold up (Jazz Singer anyone). They get all the attention for creating a new wave of films but since then they've been done better. To me, The Exorsist, Dawn of the Dead, and Halloween hold up much better as far as 70's horror flicks go. Same with Jaws and Alien, if they can even be considered horror (as much a horror as King Kong), as they were just all around well made movies. Texas Chainsaw Massacre disappointed me in the same way that Amityville Horror and Rosemary's Baby did (both of which I thought were utter garbage). Those two films perfectly established an erie atmosphere but the main antagonist (demon/devil) in those films just wasn't scary at all (actually made me laugh).

From me, Texas Chainsaw Massacre getting a 6/10 is pretty good, considering the crap made today would rarely get over a 4/10. Really, I didn't think it was bad, just not worthy of the status it holds.

[Lazario]

Executed by a music video director ( ).

Michael Bay's Texas Chainsaw Massacre is what the remake amounts to. We go from movies with substance (Alien) to movies that are all flash (AVP-R) when those kinds of directors get their hands on it. Although, the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre was pretty brainless but not music video brainless. I was just as disappointed with the remake, but it didn't have the good reputation, thats why I'm more disappointed with the original that was supposed to change the bad taste left in my mouth from the remake.

I see those early 70's films as important (Wes Craven's early work) but ultimately they just don't hold up (Jazz Singer anyone). They get all the attention for creating a new wave of films but since then they've been done better. To me, The Exorsist, Dawn of the Dead, and Halloween hold up much better as far as 70's horror flicks go. Same with Jaws and Alien, if they can even be considered horror (as much a horror as King Kong), as they were just all around well made movies. Texas Chainsaw Massacre disappointed me in the same way that Amityville Horror and Rosemary's Baby did (both of which I thought were utter garbage). Those two films perfectly established an erie atmosphere but the main antagonist (demon/devil) in those films just wasn't scary at all (actually made me laugh).

From me, Texas Chainsaw Massacre getting a 6/10 is pretty good, considering the crap made today would rarely get over a 4/10. Really, I didn't think it was bad, just not worthy of the status it holds.

I don't want to say anything to make you believe I have the due respect for Halloween and Dawn of the Dead, but Texas is infinitely better than both. It's an absolute flawless masterpiece in every way, shape, and form. So- compared to those films, the acting is better than in Halloween, and the tone is more consistent and effective than in Dawn. People have to admit that there are scenes in Dawn that are distractingly silly. And it's a long movie, too. So, to make it longer just for the sake of things like pie fights and scenes with Peter and Roger goofing off that don't enhance the atmosphere and just have the movie running through the Goblin tracks until they have to fall back on the fairly miserable library-tracks. The mood becomes repetitive. These things, most people either forgive them because of Romero's important focus on social commentary, or because they really like the male characters. Like in the same way it happens there are fan-clubs out there for Kurt Russell's character in Escape from New York, or Patrick Swayze's "Dalton" from Roadhouse. Not necessarily because they got into the moment and are interested in the nuances of this or that, just because they like watching them run around with guns and think they're "badass."

And Halloween has nothing to distract audiences (other than, perhaps, the 2.35:1 cinematography / camera-placements) away from the acting. So it really affects the movie that the acting from almost everyone is terrible. And the dialogue for the girls (and Carpenter has actually admitted this in interviews) is really... stupid (at times). And has nothing to do with anything. I'm a lot more forgiving of this kind of thing if the director has a real point to make. But this is really just an excuse to cover us with atmosphere. It's great atmosphere. But we have to take it down a few pegs for the acting quality. In Texas, the characters actually talk like real people and it feels like real pieces of their conversations were filmed and put together. Oh, and... as for you finding the movie funny... Tobe Hooper finds the movie hilarious, himself. There are many moments that are intended by Hooper to be partially humorous. I didn't find them funny, but different people notice different things.

And as for Rosemary's Baby... It's the single greatest horror film ever made. It is the single greatest horror film ever made. That will never be changed. Either one of us could contest that. But it doesn't matter. There's nothing we can do to touch it. It's the ultimate horror masterpiece. Utterly flawless.

[KubrickFan]

Executed by a music video director ( ).

What's wrong with being a music video director? Spike Jonze started doing those, and so did David Fincher at the beginning of their careers. Look at where they are now.
That of course doesn't mean that Marcus Nispel is as good as those two, but you don't have to be condescending about it.

[Lazario]

Executed by a music video director ( ).

What's wrong with being a music video director? Spike Jonze started doing those, and so did David Fincher at the beginning of their careers. Look at where they are now.
That of course doesn't mean that Marcus Nispel is as good as those two, but you don't have to be condescending about it.

I'm sorry you seem to be upset by what I said, but the fact that Nispel is a director of music videos, proves what little respect he has for the original source material.

And I have nothing positive to say about Spike Jonze as of yet. It doesn't impress me whatsoever that a lot of people have a high opinion of Where the Wild Things Are.

[KubrickFan]

I'm sorry you seem to be upset by what I said, but the fact that Nispel is a director of music videos, proves what little respect he has for the original source material.

And I have nothing positive to say about Spike Jonze as of yet. It doesn't impress me whatsoever that a lot of people have a high opinion of Where the Wild Things Are.

The fact that he started in music videos shows how he is as a movie director? How is that even possible? The movies they make might not be in your taste, but that he started out doing music videos doesn't have anything to do with that at all.
In fact, there are many directors who started either in music videos or commercials and I don't think those are necessarily better or worse than any other director. David Fincher or Ridley Scott are prime examples.

[jpanimation]

And as for Rosemary's Baby... It's the single greatest horror film ever made. It is the single greatest horror film ever made. That will never be changed. Either one of us could contest that. But it doesn't matter. There's nothing we can do to touch it. It's the ultimate horror masterpiece. Utterly flawless.

Agree to disagree

BTW, anyone seen Paranormal Activity? From what I gather its The Exorcist with Blair Witch-style shakycam. I've heard its scary but the last film to get this much hype was The Ring and we all know how scary Lilo was

[Lazario]

I'm skipping Paranormal Activity. That's all we need is another retarded, hyped-up flick that makes people think there are really ghosts out there. Gullible, much?!

And as for Rosemary's Baby... It's the single greatest horror film ever made. It is the single greatest horror film ever made. That will never be changed. Either one of us could contest that. But it doesn't matter. There's nothing we can do to touch it. It's the ultimate horror masterpiece. Utterly flawless.

Agree to disagree

I agree you don't seem to like it. But it is still the greatest horror film of all-time. Nothing we can do about it.

I'm sorry you seem to be upset by what I said, but the fact that Nispel is a director of music videos, proves what little respect he has for the original source material.

The fact that he started in music videos shows how he is as a movie director?

Don't read too much into this. David Fincher is a pretty good director. Sometimes. But Nispel is not a serious filmmaker. And he should have spent a lot more time thinking Texas Chainsaw Massacre out before remaking it. He's a Michael Bay stableboy. That's all. And the fact is, being a music video director means for almost every one of them- it's all about the technical side and the story and many other factors aren't as important to them. Think what you want. But this is the way it is. To people like you, it obviously doesn't matter what background a "director" has. To me, it does.

The movies they make might not be in your taste

Not really the point here, KF. If a movie lacks intelligence, any point whatsoever, and rapes a great original film just to make money- who's taste is it? The people being manipulated into paying the money?

[slave2moonlight]

I don't want to go on and on, I've got too much junk to do. I will say though, that I love the original Texas Chainsaw, it's one of the all-time best horror films ever, and while I'm not anti-remakes, I didn't like the new one much (the prequel was better). The hitchhiker in the original was so realistically creepy. This was back in the time of Manson and all that; people in general were creepy around then, ha, and you just can't match that with a modern movie using known stars. These types of horror films from back then were just more believable in general, with their grittiness and actually more realistic characters. It's hard to lose yourself in a film when everyone is or looks like they should be on the WB/CW. The actors in the oldschool films of TCM days didn't distract you with that, and annoying characters like the whiney brother in the wheelchair are more like real people, sadly. On top of all that, the new one, ugh, too much chasing around with the chainsaw. I don't know, those parts felt really long to me. I get bored by that kind of stuff. It just wasn't kept interesting for me. I need a little more going on. But then, maybe that's why I'm one of the only folks who really enjoys that TCM Next Generation sequel, ha. Yeah, that one was weird, but it wasn't boring.

And I haven't seen "Paranormal Activity", but my little sister did and said it was pathetic.

[jpanimation]

But then, maybe that's why I'm one of the only folks who really enjoys that TCM Next Generation sequel, ha. Yeah, that one was weird, but it wasn't boring.

I hate that movie. I stopped watching it halfway through when Matthew McConaughey showed up. I thought it was some MTV parody thing that they do for the movie rewards only to find out that it was an actual movie. I should've stopped watching it when Renée Zellweger showed her bad acting face but I kept thinking it was a movie spoof that would be funny. There was just as many stars in this crap as the other remake crap.

BTW, I completely agree with the unknowns being a good thing with the original or any horror movie of that matter.

And I haven't seen "Paranormal Activity", but my little sister did and said it was pathetic.

lol My brother says it's scary but my cousin (girl) says it's crap. Supposedly the guy does a lot of stupid macho things that the girl finds stupid, but they sound completely realistic for a guy to do in those situations when your not really sure its real (antagonizing a demon anyone). My brother said the movies was a joke up until the very end when some really creepy shit happens. I'm just not getting my hopes up for this one as it sounds like another Blair Witch Project and will just rent it from the library.

[slave2moonlight]

I hate that movie. I stopped watching it halfway through when Matthew McConaughey showed up. I thought it was some MTV parody thing that they do for the movie rewards only to find out that it was an actual movie. I should've stopped watching it when Renée Zellweger showed her bad acting face but I kept thinking it was a movie spoof that would be funny. There was just as many stars in this crap as the other remake crap.

Ah, but keep in mind that they weren't stars when they made this.

[Siren]

The most disturbing movie ever, I don't even know the name of it...I believe it was a made for TV movie, like a Lifetime one. I was channel surfing when I came upon a scene that to this day horrifies me.

A man snatched a toddler from the mother's home...I believe he was the father and he was abusive and a nasty custody case happened and he lost and snapped...so he snatches the kid and runs down the stairs and onto the street with him, slams the boy into the ground and begins to STOMP him to death. Not kick, but literally, putting all his weight into crushing this boy to pieces. You don't "see" it really. You see the father from the waist up, hear the kid screaming and the screaming got less and less as he died. I remember you could hear bones crushing, but I don't think it was an "over the top" think. The mother and I think the grandmother ran out and were understandably freaking out.

I watched the whole scene in horror, I changed the channel soon after the attack was done and I've never been able to shake it.

[jpanimation]

The most disturbing movie ever, I don't even know the name of it...I believe it was a made for TV movie, like a Lifetime one. I was channel surfing when I came upon a scene that to this day horrifies me.

A man snatched a toddler from the mother's home...I believe he was the father and he was abusive and a nasty custody case happened and he lost and snapped...so he snatches the kid and runs down the stairs and onto the street with him, slams the boy into the ground and begins to STOMP him to death. Not kick, but literally, putting all his weight into crushing this boy to pieces. You don't "see" it really. You see the father from the waist up, hear the kid screaming and the screaming got less and less as he died. I remember you could hear bones crushing, but I don't think it was an "over the top" think. The mother and I think the grandmother ran out and were understandably freaking out.

I watched the whole scene in horror, I changed the channel soon after the attack was done and I've never been able to shake it.

Thats horrible, doesn't sound like the typical Lifetime movie (bone crunching sounds). What's so bad is selfish/psychotic/jerk-off parents like that really exist in this word (http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/ss/related/88472). That is really disturbing and the fact that it could really happen makes it even more so.

[Lazario]

The most disturbing movie ever, I don't even know the name of it...I believe it was a made for TV movie, like a Lifetime one. I was channel surfing when I came upon a scene that to this day horrifies me.

A man snatched a toddler from the mother's home...I believe he was the father and he was abusive and a nasty custody case happened and he lost and snapped...so he snatches the kid and runs down the stairs and onto the street with him, slams the boy into the ground and begins to STOMP him to death. Not kick, but literally, putting all his weight into crushing this boy to pieces. You don't "see" it really. You see the father from the waist up, hear the kid screaming and the screaming got less and less as he died. I remember you could hear bones crushing, but I don't think it was an "over the top" think. The mother and I think the grandmother ran out and were understandably freaking out.

I watched the whole scene in horror, I changed the channel soon after the attack was done and I've never been able to shake it.

Then... whatever you do... don't watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SeiFJ_biSc



(and, no... it's not a clip from that particular Lifetime movie)

[2099net]

I've only just watched it, but I found Coraline incredibly disturbing. I was feeling ill at the time though (and watching it through slightly headache inducing 3D glasses). However, it was genuinely creepy.

I've not seen all of the supplements, but I was interested by something touched upon twice in various features. Children don't seem to find it scary - to them its a big adventure for Coraline - but adults often do. This was in relation to Gaiman's original book version, but I think it will probably be true with the film too.