Lord of Illusions (1995)

The great Clive Barker is known as a horror/fantasy writer and an artist, but he also made a brief foray into filmmaking, writing and directing only three feature films, all of them fascinating and bursting with personality. He became disillusioned with the business of filmmaking, and how clueless studio executives could tinker with his work, but nowadays his films can be seen in their preferred director's cuts, including his third, Lord of Illusions. I just caught up with it for the first time on Shout! Factory's superb 2014 Blu-ray release, which includes the 109-minute theatrical cut and the 121-minute director's cut. read more...

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• Viewed as Monsters ▶ Yes please
• Theater of Blood ▶ Make me cringe
• Innocence ▶ Seasoned, Savvy, Streetwise

Carrie (2013)

It's hard to care much about the idea of a remake of Brian De Palma's 1976 masterpiece Carrie -- given one ill-fated sequel, The Rage: Carrie 2, a TV remake in 2002 and various Broadway productions -- until we consider that it comes from Kimberly Peirce, the outsider director of Boys Don't Cry (1999) and Stop-Loss (2008), who works all too infrequently. Given her penchant for bullied characters and her overall female perspective, this pairing makes startling sense. read more...

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• Viewed as Monsters ▶ Yes please
• Theater of Blood ▶ Make me cringe

Ravenous (1999)

Ravenous is a terrifically well-made gory horror movie with splashes of humor. Robert Carlyle (The Full Monty) stars as a mysterious man who turns up at a California military outpost, circa 1850, and turns out to be a cannibal. Guy Pearce (L.A. Confidential), David Arquette (Scream), Jeffrey Jones (Amadeus), and Jeremy Davies (Saving Private Ryan) also star as American soldiers. Director Antonia Bird (Priest, Mad Love) keeps everything smart and balanced, and an amazing score by Michael Nyman (The Piano, Gattaca) -- reminiscent of 1970s-era Italian horror movies -- keeps us on our toes. This is not for the faint of heart; it may convert you into a vegetarian. read more...

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• Viewed as Monsters ▶ Yes please
• Theater of Blood ▶ Make me cringe

Bride of Chucky (1998)

The talking doll Chucky, voiced by Brad Dourif, was the killer in the Child's Play slasher series, one of many that ran out of steam. But in the late 1990s the series became more playful with Bride of Chucky (1998). Oscar-nominee Jennifer Tilly plays Tiffany, an ex-girlfriend of Chucky's former human self, who is killed and turned into another doll. Chucky and Tiffany hit the road with a young couple, hoping to take over their human bodies, and wind up on another bloody killing spree. Amazingly, Hong Kong action director Ronny Yu (The Bride with White Hair) was hired to direct this, and he brings a slick, kinetic, cartoonish energy to the proceedings. Yu went on to direct another slasher sequel, Freddy vs. Jason (2003). read more...

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• Viewed as Monsters ▶ Yes please
• Theater of Blood ▶ Make me cringe

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

After making several hit comedies, John Landis indulged his love for horror with this werewolf movie. Although it features impressive, state-of-the-art visual effects by Rick Baker, the movie is also somewhat tongue-in-cheek. Two hitchhiking Americans, David (David Naughton) and Jack (Griffin Dunne) wind up lost in the moors. They find a pub, "The Slaughtered Lamb," but decide that the patrons are not very friendly and -- after some warnings -- they head out again. A creature attacks them: Jack is killed and David goes to the hospital. After a series of disturbing nightmares and a visit from a dead (and decaying) Jack, David learns that he's going to turn into a werewolf himself at the next full moon. The only option is to kill himself, except that he's fallen in love with a pretty nurse (Jenny Agutter). read more...

Search for streaming:

• Viewed as Monsters ▶ Yes please
• Theater of Blood ▶ Make me cringe