Happy Birthday: Gene Tierney

Happy 92nd Birthday to Gene Tierney! I like a lot of her movies, but I have yet to see Leave Her to Heaven (1945), which I've heard a lot of good things about. My two favorite movies with Gene are The Ghost and Mrs. Muir (1947) and Heaven Can Wait (1943). If you haven't watched these before, then you must! They're both so good!

Happy Birthday: Grace Kelly

This was meant to be posted yesterday, but my Internet was acting up. I blame the little flurries outside for the problem! Happy Birthday to my favorite Hitchcock blonde, Grace Kelly! Not sure I'll be able to get around to watching Rear Window tonight, but I'm definitely going to be watching it soon. It's been too long! I love the dresses!

31 Days of Horror: Day 18: La maschera del demonio 'Black Sunday' (1960)

Black Sunday is one strange movie. I'd describe it as gothic horror. It's about a witch, who while being burned at the stake and smashed in the face with a mask of the devil, puts a curse on the royal family claiming that she will one day return.

Centuries later, two doctors, Dr. Andre Gorobec and Dr. Thomas Kruvajan, are traveling into the city for a medical conference when their carriage breaks outside a crypt, the one containing the old witch's remains. There is glass over the coffin, showing the mask over the woman's face and a cross to ward her off if she were to reawaken.

For some reason, Dr. Kruvajan decides to break into the coffin, destroying the cross and stealing the mask. Clearly, this was an enormously stupid thing to do. His blood drops onto the corpse and reawakens the witch. She will do everything in her power to possess the body of her look-alike descendant, Princess Asa Vajda, no matter how many people she and her servant murder along the way.

I love the atmosphere of this film. The use of light and dark makes scenes extra creepy. You never know what could be lurking around the corner! Especially when you're in a graveyard or a gothic castle with hidden passageways! I also liked that the witch wasn't just a witch, she was a vampire-witch. Vampire-witches are extremely evil! Capable of doing both witchcraft and conniving vampire tricks! She's one villain you don't want to mess with.

This is the first Mario Bava film that I've watched. I plan on watching more because I like his style. If you have Netflix, Black Sunday is currently on instant. The dubbing is a bit horrific at times, but it's still possible to enjoy the film. 

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween! I hope you're watching a horror movie or at least watching Hocus Pocus or It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. I wasn't able to finish 31 Days of Horror yet, but I'm going to continue posting. October isn't long enough for all the horror movies I want to watch! Also, as I anticipated, my schedule was very busy with two accounting courses, work, and other stuff. Busy, but good! Enjoy your Halloween!

31 Days of Horror: Day 17: Tower of Terror (1997)

Disney original TV movies were awesome! I still can't get over how much the Disney Channel has bombed over the years, compared to how it used to be. I mean, not playing Don't Look Under the Bed or Tower of Terror now is crap! I think they played Don't Look Under the Bed around 3:00 am on a weekday, which is an asshole move. Come on!

I loved Tower of Terror when it came out. The story came about because of the Tower of Terror ride at Disney. I'm very afraid of elevators dropping though, which is why I have never been able to go on the ride. I refuse to believe that it's fun!

The movie is fun though! Yeah, it's pretty cheesy, but I think it adds to its character. The movie focuses on the story of the death of 5 people who died in the elevator 60 years ago. The hotel is now abandoned, with the rumor that the ghosts of the 5 people now haunt the building. No one seems to know why the elevator collapsed to the floor, but a reporter Buzzy and his niece Anna end up trying to solve the mystery of what really happened that night.

This is definitely a campy movie, so don't expect to watch it and be scared. Some children's horror movies are still scary, like Don't Look Under the Bed. Although, the characters in the movie do seem legitimately scared at times. The scariest thing is the creepy old woman. 

31 Days of Horror: Day 15: New Nightmare (1994)

I'm a huge fan of A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). I think it's the movie that got me into the horror genre more than any I had seen before. It made me laugh and it scared me at the same time; it also had a young Johnny Depp. Hard not to like something like that!

I've already included Nightmare on Elm Street in a previous year of 31 Days of Horror. My love for that movie led me to check out some others involving Freddy. The second one is unwatchable, but there are some that are still fun to watch. I liked Dream Warriors and I included that one in 31 Days of Horror last year.

I really enjoy New Nightmare! It's not really part of the Nightmare series because it's mainly connected with the first installment, instead of the series as a whole. It's different then other horror movies that I've watched before. It's filmed like it's a documentary, catching up with some of the actors during the 10 year anniversary of the release of the first Nightmare. However, all of that changes when Freddy becomes real and Heather Langenkamp has to fight him once again by being Nancy.

By starting the movie out as more of a documentary, it successfully made Freddy Kruger as scary as he was in the first Nightmare. I was very creeped out! Made me think Freddy was real while I was watching it, even though I know it's not possible! The real life mixed with a fake world is what made it so frightening. Watch it late at night when it's pitch black!

31 Days of Horror: Day 14: Rebecca (1940)

Yeah, yeah, I know some of you are saying, "Rebecca?! That's not a horror movie!" False! It is a horror movie! How can you go an entire movie without the lead female having a name?! How can people like Mrs. Danvers be allowed in the movie?! Obviously, it's because it's a psychological horror movie!

Rebecca is an incredible movie. I have yet to read the book, but since Selznick was the producer, I think it's safe to say that the movie followed the book fairly well. He was a stickler to that, due to the fact that he understood an audience's love for a well written novel. I wish that people like him were still around...

Anyway, to get to the horrific elements of Rebecca, just look at the lead's whole situtation. She meets this handsome man, quickly falls in love, moves on from that mean woman that she had to take care of, and ends up in a mansion. Unfortunately for her, she isn't nearly as interesting or as glamourous as the original Mrs. de Winter, Rebecca. Pretty sad to never be called by an actual name, isn't it?

Mrs. Danvers really didn't care for the second Mrs. de Winter, but she sure had a thing for the original one. A little too obsessed if you ask me. Why would someone talk so lovingly about someone's hairbrush and leave their room exactly the way it was before they passed away? A creep! That's who would do that! Creep!

If you haven't already watched Rebecca, you are seriously missing out. It's one of Hitchcock's best movies. It's full of suspense, horror, and drama. There's even a bit of humor mixed into it! Fabulous movie! Great acting and great story over all!