2021: Seen/Read

Everything I watched and read in 2021. Sodey does these things for his blog, Extension 765. Thought I'd give it a whirl. I'm slowly but surely carving out the best stuff I've seen this year. That list should be up by the end of the month.

(R) indicates rewatch

italicized indicates book 

JANUARY

1- Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979) (R)

2- In the Blink of An Eye by Walter Murch (1991)

    Born In Flames (1983)

    Phantom of the Paradise (1974) (R)

3- The Girl In Room 2A (1974)

    The French Sex Murders (1972)

4- My Dear Killer (1972)

6- Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) (short)

    At Land (1944) (short)

7- A Study In Choreography for Camera (1945) (short)

    The Private Life of A Cat (1946) (short)

    Ritual In Transfigured Time (1946) (short)

    Meditation on Violence (1948) (short)

8- Best In Show (2000) (R)

    Waterworld (1995) (R)

    Strip Nude For Your Killer (1975)

9- Mary Jane's Not A Virgin Anymore (1996)

    I Was A Teenage Serial Killer (1993)

10- The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) (R)

11- Hitchcock/Truffaut (2015)

      Shadow of A Doubt (1943) (R)

      Le Doulos (1962) (R)

12- Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) (R)

      The Big Nowhere by James Ellroy (1988)

13- Pretty Poison (1968)

      Dance, Girl, Dance (1940)

14- Who Saw Her Die? (1972)

      Orgasm (1969)

15- So Sweet...So Perverse (1969)

     A Quiet Place to Kill (1970)

     Knife of Ice (1972)

     The Cat and the Canary (1927)

16- Scanners (1981) (R)

      The Red Queen Kills Seven Times (1972)

17- McCabe and Mrs. Miller (1971) (R)

      The Beastmaster (1982)

20- Kajillionaire (2020)

      Wraiths of the Broken Land by S. Craig Zahler (2012)

21- Action U.S.A. (1989)

      Brawl In Cell Block 99 (2017) (R)

22- Night Stalker: The Hunt For A Serial Killer (2021)

      Euphoria Special Episode Part 2: Jules 

23- The AGFA Horror Trailer Show (2020)

      Frankie and Johnnie Were Lovers (1973)

      The Miss Layed Genie (1973)

COVID TIER 3 RESTRICTIONS LIFTED

24- The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) (R)

25- Distant Star by Roberto Bolano (1996) (tr. by Chris Andrews)

     The Perfume of the Lady In Black (1974)

26- MST3K: Escape 2000

30- I Start Counting! (1970)

31- The Strange Vice of Mrs. Wardh (1971) (R)

FEBRUARY 

1- The Caller (1987)

    Camille 2000 (1969)

2- Bad Black (2016) (R)

3- Shining Sex (1976)

5- Malcolm and Marie (2021)

    Female Vampire (1974)

8- A Glitch In the Matrix (2021)

    MST3K: The Undead

    Promising Young Woman (2020)

9- Slows Days, Fast Company by Eve Babitz

    Truck Turner (1974)

10- Red Roses of Passion (1966)

11- Public Affairs (1983)

12- Tammy and the T-Rex (1994) (R)

      The Love Witch (2016) (R)

13- Judas and the Black Messiah (2021)

14- In the Mood For Love (2000) (R)

     My Bloody Valentine (1981) (R)

15- Last Year At Marienbad (1961) (R)

16- Satanic Pandemonium (1975)

17- Violent Cop (1989)

      This Man Is Dangerous: The Birth of Takeshi Kitano

18- Saint Maud (2020)

19- Shin Godzilla (2016)

20- The Scarlet Empress (1934)

      "A Collapse of Horses" by Brian Evenson

      "Signs and Symbols" by Vladimir Nabokov

21- Let My Puppets Come (1976)

22- True Lies (1994)

      "The Circular Ruins" by Jorge Luis Borges

      "The Town Manager" by Thomas Ligotti

23- M (1931) (R)

      Conversations with Fritz Lang

      RoboCop (1987) (R)

      Birds of Prey (2019)

24- Green For Danger (1946)

      Criss Cross (1949)

25- A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn (1980)

27- Deep Cover (1992)

28- Petey Wheatstraw (1977)

MARCH

1- One, Two, Three (1961)

    Affliction (1997)

    Night Tide (1961)

2- Diary of A Mad Housewife (1970)

    The Dangers of Smoking In Bed: Stories by Mariana Enriquez (2021)

3- Blue Collar (1978)

    House of Clocks (1989)

4- A New Leaf (1971) (R)

5- The Parallax View (1974)

6- Burn! (1969)

8- Showgirls (1995) (R)

9- Get Carter (1971)

    Blown Away (1994) (R)

    Pretty Peaches (1978)

10- Deep End (1970)

     The Beaver Trilogy (2000)

11- The Duke of Burgundy (2014) (R)

12- Bound (1996) (R)

13- The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant (1972) (R)

15- Lost In America (1985)

      Matilda (1996) (R)

16- Midnight Run (1988) (R)

      The Palm Beach Story (1942)

19- Lifeboat (1944) (R)

      In the Miso Soup by Ryu Murakami (1997)

20- Loves of A Blonde (1965)

21- Death Proof (2007) (R)

      At the Video Store (2019)

22- The Godfather Part II (1974) (R)

23- The Mighty Ducks (1992) (R)

      Little Murders (1971)

      The Beaver Trilogy Part IV (2016)

24- A Swim In the Pond In the Rain by George Saunders (2021)

25- SexWorld (1977)

27- The Cranes Are Flying (1957)

      Tribe by Sebastian Junger (2016)

29- That Thing You Do! (1996) (R)

      Dune (1984)

30- Critters 2: The Main Course (1988) (R)

31- Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1866)

APRIL

1- F.T.A. (1972)

4- Defending Your Life (1991)

    Last Temptation of Christ (1988) (R)

5- Blood Simple (1984) (R)

8- Bad Trip (2021)

10- Portrait of A Lady On Fire (2019)

11- Freaky (2020)

      The Monster and the Girl (1941)

      Baby Rosemary (1976)

12- The NeverEnding Story (1984) (R)

      Duck Soup (1933)

13- Shiva Baby (2020)

15- Bullet In the Head (1990)

18- Mother's Day (1980)

21- Smooth Talk (1985)

22- The Wicker Man (1973) (R)

      Jeremy (1973)

      Bad Girls Go to Hell (1965)

25- House By the Cemetery (1981) (R)

27- Election by Tom Perrotta (1998)

      Election (1999) (R)

      Bringing Out the Dead (1999) (R)

29- Daisies (1966) (R)

     A Heart So White by Javiar Marias (1992)

30- Cape Fear (1991) (R)

MAY

1- Real Genius (1985)

3- Seconds (1966) (R)

    I'm Not Okay With This (2020)

4- The Mitchells Vs. the Machines (2021)

    Celine and Julie Go Boating (1974)

6- A League of Their Own (1992) (R)

9- Mother (1996)

10- The Game (1997) (R)

11- My Girl (1991) (R)

13- The Nice Guys (2016) (R)

      We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver (2003)

14- We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) (R)

15- Dennis the Menace (1991) (R)

17- What About Bob? (1991) (R)

      Let's Scare Jessica to Death (1971) (R)

18- Pather Panchali (1955) (R)

22- Commando (1985) (R)

23- White of the Eye (1987)

24- Midnight Run (1988) (R)

      The Serpent and the Rainbow (1988) (R)

25- As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

26- The Bad News Bears (1976)

27- Napoleon Dynamite (2004) (R)

29- Black Summer (3 episodes)

31- Bo Burnham: Inside (2021)

JUNE

1- Black Summer (3 episodes)

3- Black Summer (2 episodes)

    The Empty Man (2020)

5- Throw Momma From the Train (1987)

7- High and Low (1963) (R)

    Matinee (1993) (R) (The Music Box, 1st time in a theater since initial lockdown)

8- The Amusement Park (1973)

9- Desperate Living (1977)

    The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert (2014)

14- Lemora: A Child's Tale of the Supernatural (1973)

15- Heavyweights (1995) (R)

      Year of the Dragon (1985)

      Manual For Cleaning Women by Lucia Berlin (2015)

17- Black Summer (1 episode)

      Interviews with Francis Bacon by David Sylveter (1975)

18- Black Summer (2 episodes)

19- Black Summer (3 episodes)

21- Black Summer (2 episodes)

27- Happy Birthday to Me (1981) (R)

      Stay Tuned (1992) (R)

      StageFright: Aquarius (1987) (R)

28- Jurassic Park (1993) (R)

29- Predator (1987) (R)

     Charley Varrick (1973) (R)

30- Deliverance (1972) (R)

JULY

1- Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson

2- Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas (1998) (R)

    No Sudden Move (2021)

3- Born On the Fourth of July (1989) (R)

5- Dead and Buried (1981) (R)

6- Malibu High (1978)

7- Zola (2021) (Marcus Cinemas, Orland Park)

8- The Goonies (1985) (R)

    "Pauline Alone" (2014)

11- Black Mama, White Mama (1973)

12- The Hole (1960)

     Chafed Elbows (1966)

13- Crash by J.G. Ballard (1973)

      Curtains (1983)

      Shiva Baby (2021)     

      Crash (1996)

14- Magic Mike XXL (2015) (R)

17- Smile (1975)

18- Y Tu Mama Tambien (2001) (R)

19- Pig (2021) (The Music Box)

     Amsterdamned (1988)

20- Seven (1979)

21- Once Upon A Time In Hollywood by Quentin Tarantino (2021)

     Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain (2021) (AMC Crestwood 18)

22- Once Upon A Time...In Hollywood (2019) (R)

26- Woodstock 99: Peace, Love and Rage (2021)

      Rolling Thunder (1977) (R)

      The Empty Man (2020) (R)

27- A Brighter Summer Day (1991) (R)

29- Demolition Man (1993) (R)

31- Old (2021) (AMC Crestwood 18)

AUGUST

1- Long Weekend (1978) (R)

2- MST3K: Mr. B's Lost Shorts MST3K

    There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane (2011)

    The Green Knight (2021) (The Music Box)

3- Teenagers From Outer Space (MST3K)

    If on a winter's night a traveler by Italo Calvino (1979) (tr. William Weaver)

4- The Green Knight (2021) (R) (AMC Crestwood 18)

    Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) (R)

5- Catch and Kill: The Podcast Tapes (2021) (3 episodes)

7- Wet Hot American Summer (2001) (R)

9- Matewan (1987) (R)

    Duel (1971) (R)

10- Blackhat (2015) (R)

11- Road to Revenge aka Champagne and Bullets (1993)

13- Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984) (R)

15- 9 Lives of A Wet Pussy (1976)

16- That's Sexploitation! (2013)

      The Suicide Squad (2021)

       Near Dark (1987) (R)

17- The Birds (1963) (R)

      The Boxer's Omen (1983)

18- Lonesome (1929)

21- Sleazoid Express by Bill Landis and Michelle Clifford (2002)

22- Bullitt (1968) (R)

23- The Stepfather (1987) (R)

      Dick Tracy (1990) (R)

24- Don't Panic (1988)

      Hellzapoppin' (1941)

      Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) (R)

26- The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus (1996)

28- Wild Beasts (1983)

      Candyman (1992)

30- Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991) (R)

      Mute Witness (1995)

31- The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)

      Candyman (2021)

SEPTEMBER

4- A Bay of Blood (1971) (R)

   The Ghastly Ones (1968)

   The Wizard of Gore (1970)

5- The Pit (1981)

6- The Gate (1987) (R)

    The Outing (1987)

    Peeping Tom (1960) (R)

7- Body Parts (1991)

    The Last of Sheila (1973)

9- Killer Workout (1987)

11- Grave of the Vampire (1972)

     Baby Rosemary (1976)

12- Malignant (2021)

13- Les Diabolique (1955) (R)

     Marianne (2019) (4 episodes)

14- Marianne (2019) (2 episodes)

     The Card Counter (2021)

     Evil Dead Trap (1988)

     Kin by Kealan Patrick Burke (2011)

15- Autopsy (1975)

      Butcher Baker Nightmare Maker (1982)

16- Xtro (1982)

18- They Look Like People (2016)

      Count Dracula (1970)

19- Cuadecuc, Vampir (1971)

20- Marianne (2019) (2 episodes)

     Don't Torture A Duckling (1972) (R)

     The Bird With the Crystal Plumage (1970) (R)

21- Don't Deliver Us From Evil (1971)

      The Tomb of Ligeia (1964)

22- Retribution (1987)

      Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers (1988)

23- The Untold Story (1993)

      Category III: The Untold Story of Hong Kong Exploitation (2018)

25- Midnight Mass (2021) (2 episodes)

26- Midnight Mass (3 episodes)

27- Midnight Mass (2 episodes)

28- The Centerfold Girls (1974)

29- Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones

      Mulholland Dr. (The Music Box) (R)

30- The Manitou (1978)

      Titane (2021) (AMC Crestwood 18)

OCTOBER

1- Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983)

2- Satan's Blood (1978)

    Absurd (1981)

3- The Phantom Carriage (1921) (R)

4- The Funhouse (1981) (R)

    Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Crimson Clown, The Curious Camera, The Dream Girl

5- Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Phone Police, The Dollmaker

    Flesh Eater (1988)

    Castle Freak (1995)

   Fear by Dario Argento (2020)

6- Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Thirteenth Floor

    Repulsion (1965) (R)

    A Women's Torment (1977)

    Titane (2021) (R)

7- Beyond Dream's Door (1989)

    Bones (2001)

9- Are You Afraid of the Dark: Dead Man's Float

    Blood For Dracula (1974)

    Lisa and the Devil (1973)

10- Housebound (2014)

      The Child (1977)

11- The Masque of the Red Death (1964)

      Deathdream (1974)

      Phantasm (1979) (R)

12- Young Frankenstein (1974) (R)

     The Black Cat (1989)

     The Black Cat (1934) (R)

13- The Curse of Frankenstein (1957)

      Frankenstein Created Woman (1967)

14- Halloween Kills (2021) (Marcus Theaters)

      Men, Women and Chainsaws by Carol Clover (1992)

15- House On the Edge of the Park (1980) 

16- Twilight Zone: The Movie (1983) (R)

      Tales of the Uncanny (2020)

17- Black Sunday (1960)

18- Asylum (1972) (R)

     It Follows (2014) (R)

19- Daughters of Darkness (1971) (R)

      The Shiver of the Vampires (1971)

21- Inquisition (1977)

      Alone In the Dark (1982)

23-24: Music Box of Horrors

            -Strait-Jacket (1964) (35mm)

            -Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde (1973) (35mm; William Crain Q & A)

            -The Hands of Orlac (1924) (w/ live score)

            -Ghostwatch (1992) (R)

            -The Granny (1995) 

            -The Scary of Sixty-First (2021) (Dasha Nekrasova Q & A)

            -The Faculty (1998) (35mm) (R)

            -Tenebre (1982) (35mm Extended International cut) (R)

            -Calvaire (2004) (35mm)

            -Night of the Living Dead (1990) (35mm) (R)

            -Phantasm II (1988) (35mm) (R)

            -Arachnophobia (1990) (35mm) (R)

24- House (1977) (R)

25- Gretel and Hansel (2020) (R)

      Possession (1981) (4K DCP) (The Music Box) (R)

26- Train to Busan (2016)

      Censor (2021)

      Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward (2021)

28- Halloween: Season of the Witch (1982) (R)

      Horror Rises From the Tomb (1973)

      Mad Love (1935)

29- WNUF Halloween Special (2013) (R)

30- Dune (2021) (Landmark Theater)

      Cemetery of Terror (1985)

31- Beetlejuice (1988) (R)

     City of the Living Dead (1980) (R)

     Rosemary's Baby (1968) (R)

     Trick R Treat (2008) (R)

NOVEMBER

1- Succession (2 episodes)

    Nightmare Alley (1947) (R)

2- Last Night In Soho (2021) (Marcus Theaters)

    Succession

3- Election (2005)

4- Streetwise (1984)

7- When A Stranger Calls Back (1993)

    The Big Goodbye: Chinatown and the Last Years of Hollywood by Sam Wasson (2020)

8- Le Cercle Rouge (1970) (R)

9- Thundercrack! (1975)

    Succession

10- What Happened Was... (1994)

13- The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones (2020)

      The French Connection (1971) (R)

14- New York Ninja (2021)

15- Jojo Rabbit (2019)

      Ratcatcher (1999) (R)

16- Succession

      Hearts and Minds (1974)

17- Mean Streets (1973) (R)

18- Double Indemnity (1944) (R)

20- Raiders of Atlantis (1983)

      Thief (1981) (R)

21- Memories Within Miss Aggie (1974)

22- Fade to Black (1980) (R)

      Breaking Bad (3 episodes)

23- Breaking Bad (2 episodes)

      Rififi (1955) (R)

24- Succession

      Blood Rage (1987) (R)

25- MST3K: Time Chasers (R)

      The Beatles: Get Back Part 1: Days 1-7

27- The Beatles: Get Back Part 2: Days 8-16

28- The Beatles: Get Back Part 3: Days 17-22

      Throw Down (2004)

29- Breaking Bad (4 episodes)

      Images (1972) (R)

30- C'mon C'mon (2021) (Landmark Theater)

      Detour (1945) (R)

      Succession 

DECEMBER

1- Raising Hell: Ken Russell and the Unmaking of the Devils by Richard Crouse (2012)

2- Trancers (1984)

    Blast of Silence (1961)

4- Elves (1989)

    Bergman Island (2021)

5- Everything Is Terrible! Holiday Special (2012)

    Night Killer (1990) (R)

6- Home Alone 2: Lost In New York (1992) (R)

    Breaking Bad (2 episodes)

7- Benedetta (2021) (Music Box Theater)

    The Day of the Beast (1995) (Music Box Theater)

8- Succession

    The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)

9- Cut-Throats Nine (1972)

    Night Train Murders (1975) (R)

11- Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror (2021)

12- The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen (2015)

      The Snowman (1982) (R)

      Succession

13- Breaking Bad (2 episodes)

14- Breaking Bad (2 episodes)

       Walking the Edge (1985)

        Scarlet Street (1945)

15- Black Christmas (1974) (R)

19- A Pistol For Ringo (1965)

      Ernest Saves Christmas (1988) (R)

20- The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) (R)

      Silent Night, Deadly Night (1984) (R)

      Silent Night, Deadly Night 3: Better Watch Out (1989)

      Breaking Bad (4 episodes)

21- Silent Night, Deadly Night 4: Initiation (1990)

      Nightmare Alley (2021) (Marcus Theaters)

23- The Oracle (1985)

      Blood Beat (1982) (R)

25- A Christmas Story (1983) (R)

      Phantom Thread (2017) (R)

27- The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021) (AMC River East)

      Licorice Pizza (2021) (Music Box Theater- 70mm)

      LA Confidential by James Ellroy (1990)

28- Throne of Blood (1957) (R)

      Red Rocket (2021) (AMC Crestwood 18)

      Don't Look Up (2021)

31- Summer of Soul (...or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)

Tired of Superhero Shit? So is Doom Patrol

  Sorry in advance for this praise fart that's totally gonna stink like hyperbole: this is--E A S I L Y--the best live-action superhero media existing in our universe. Strike a match or spray some Febreze because I'm gonna keep talking out of my ass about this magical bizarrity. Legion walked [off of a cliff] so Watchmen could run [into a wall] and WandaVision levitated off the ground but Doom Patrol soars above it all. It kicks ass, plays grab-ass, and even eats ass.
 

   A friend and I had a dual-epiphany that Superhero Movies are action movies with superheroes in them - they're not Comic Book Movies, which are more idiosyncratic and ambitious, especially for TV. Doom Patrol is a Comic Book Show and a fucking great one at that. It's so confident and aware of its strengths that its own weirdness is the gas in its tank; if you don't vibe with it it'll keep on truckin' because its audience will follow the freak flag - like a big gay Food Truck with a rockin' menu. It has an enviable, stupid, impressive, unpredictable, terrifying, irreverent, sexy, funny, raunchy, intelligent, horny, wise, immature, and unfettered imagination - all cultivated by immaculate tonal shifts, thematically dense plotting, mounting and confounding mysteries, and character-driven momentum. There is absolutely nothing else like it.
 

  The characters rarely do anything heroic; nearly every episode is an aggressive character study A-story with a stumbling-onto-a-half-assed-solution B-story about some new problem facing them, the universe, or existence itself. Some episodes are literal group therapy sessions; these freaks have a lot of shit to work through and lip service isn't gonna cut it. DP takes the extra time and care for its characters that every listless, plot-dominated weekend box-office smash doesn't. Hey, look, it's Robotman! He's a brain inside a hunk of metal and has the strength of an unassailable machine! ...now, let's talk about his Daddy issues and crippling gambling addiction amplified by his loss of sensation. Hey, it's Negative Man/American Icon/Pilot Larry Trainor! He has a spirit living inside of him that can do miraculous things! ...but what about his closeted gay lifestyle and gaslighting his Wife?? Let's unpack that shit before Larry's stable enough to save people - and so on.

  They never become a real superhero team until the finale of s3 when they're better mentally but in different places, Superly. And it's the VERY last scene of s3, it cuts right as they take off to be Heroic™ - 33 episodes from the Pilot. So if you're tired of superhero content then I highly recommend this superhero show.

Spreading the Syndrome

The Criterion Collection was my first introduction to the world of boutique blu ray. The July and November sales at Barnes and Noble would be mini Christmas celebrations for me. I'd stock up on as much I my wallet allowed. There were films from my favorite directors like Kubrick, Scorsese and De Palma. The selection was one where I was aware of what I was getting myself into. It was arthouse, sure. But even the genre titles like The Blob and Carnival of Souls were classic staples on television. 

When I opened the Vinegar Syndrome site, I knew a few of the titles at best. Ice Cream Man, Demon Wind and Jack Frost were video store rentals. 

They were offering Action and Exploitation bundles at the time. Through those, I made a mental note of the titles. Every month, they would release around 3 new titles and every month there were 3 movies I never knew existed. This was a company that was going deep. So I decided to finally order from them. Body Melt and The Incubus were the first two. Beyond just their descriptions, the slipcovers looked stunning. 

I will be highlighting around 20 titles that I consider the best VS has to offer. The films listed will all be 50% off MSRP during the Black Friday sale. If you are new to this label and have yet to dip your toe in, allow these recommendations to guide you. 

The Telephone Book

The poster says it all: the story of a girl who falls in love with the world's greatest obscene phone call. Photographed in black and white and including a surreal animated color sequence, this movie is one of the best kept secrets of the cult film world. 

Christmas Evil

You will be fooled into thinking this is a Santa slice and dice just by the cover. But the real present under the tree here is that it is a taut character study. 

Hot and Saucy Pizza Girls

The prosecution: "Porn is one note and boring." 

The defense would like to showcase Exhibit A: Bob Chinn's 1978 effort Hot and Saucy Pizza Girls. A comedic romp with an involving plot that revolves around a pizza parlor. 

The defense would like to showcase Exhibits B & C: Desiree Cousteau and John Holmes. 

No further questions. 

Dolemite

The Rudy Ray Moore films belong in everyone's collection. The sheer amount of energy and fun these movies contain are hard to top. Dolemite, The Human Tornado, Petey Wheatstraw and Disco Godfather have been put out by the company and you can't go wrong with any of them. 

**There's a nifty box set that houses all of them on the opening VS page. 

A Woman's Torment

Roberta Findlay's take on Repulsion. Blending melodrama and hardcore erotica with a liberal sprinkling of slasher, Findlay manages to inject warm blood into what otherwise could have been cateogrized as a boring Repulsion knock off.

Seeds/Vapors

I have to warn you upfront: Andy Milligan movies are absolutely an acquired taste. That being said, Seeds is one of those movies you need to see to believe. This is go-for-broke melodrama. A deranged plot twist awaits you at the end of every single scene. If you think your family is dysfunctional, put Seeds on. It's perfect viewing to prep for family get togethers this Thanksgiving season. 

Welcome Home Brother Charles/Emma Mae

A double feature worth writing home about, these two films by Jamaa Fanaka highlight his contribution to 70s indie cinema. Don't let the marketers fool you, these are not blaxpoitation films in the traditional sense. This is especially true of Emma Mae. A film that should have caused the same kind of stir that Mean Streets did. Jerri Hayes turns in a performance for the ages. 

Buddies

Just as important from a historical perspective as a cinematic one, Buddies is the first narrative feature films made about AIDs. An intense study of love, death and the need for activism during the earliest days of the public health crisis. Director Arthur Bressan Jr. would fall victim to AIDs two years after the movie's completion. If you like Philadelphia and/or And the Band Played On, this belongs in your collection. 

The Incubus

John Cassavetes had less than a decade to live. He would star in only six more movies. Yet this genre effort shows that he is absolutely committed to the characters he portrays, in this case Medical examiner Sam Brody. It's a supernatural semen splattered tale with genuinely effective filmmaking from director John Hough. 

Sudden Fury

A tense Canadian tax shelter-era thriller made by one time director Brian Damude. Sudden Fury is a five character piece that depicts escalating tension and violence among a married couple and a passersby. Shades of Hitchcock. 

The Corruption of Chris Miller

Releases like this one are why I love Vinegar Syndrome. Javier Bardem's uncle, Juan Antonio Bardem, crafted a Spanish giallo that ranks right up there with some of the best Italy has to offer. Convoluted revenge plots, murders driven by greed, lavish mansions, and over-the-top kills drive this twisted tale. It features one of the coolest looking killers in gialli to boot. 

Putney Swope

Vinegar Syndrome doesn't just cater to horror hounds and perverts. There's arthouse fare too. Every once in a while they will toss in a movie like this to the pile of sleaze to class things up and I am all the more grateful to them for doing it. Putney Swope is essential viewing if you are into good satire. Having come out in the peak of 60's counterculture, it satires race, politics and pop culture. Vital cinema from Robert Downey Sr. 

The Passing

The description they give is a lot better than I could do: "A seven year passion project for director/writer/producer John Huckert, The Passing is a dazzling micro-budget examination of love, loneliness, and the fear of death, set against an increasingly surreal science-fiction and horror background." This is one of those titles that not nearly enough people talk about. 

Amitville 1992: It's About Time

The second best entry in the Amityville series. The first being Amityville Horror II: The Possession. The four installments in the 'Cursed' series revolve around objects: The Evil Escape is about a lamp, A New Generation is about a cursed mirror, Dollhouse is about...well, a dollhouse. For my money, the best of the lot is this one. Hellbound: Hellraiser director Tony Randel takes on the series with finesse. 

Angel

The Angel trilogy box set has been sold out for a while, but that doesn't meen you can't buy them at all. VS sells the individual titles seperately. If I had to recommend one, it would be the first. As soon as it is about to veer into exploitation territory it takes a turn into something deeper. With great performances by Rory Calhoun and the always spectacular Susan Tyrell, this one is a real treat. Come for the synth score, stay for the egg sucking scene. 

The Candy Snatchers

This is a movie I heard about and was trying to find a decently priced copy for years. It lived up to the hype. If you're in the mood for unrelentingly bleak 70s exploitation, this is the one for you. 

Grave Robbers/Cemetery of Terror/Don't Panic

Ruben Galindo Jr. is a director I never even heard of until VS put these three movies out. Grave Robbers is a supernatural slasher concerning an axe-wielding Satanist brought back by grave robbers. Cemetery of Terror is perfect Halloween viewing fodder that tells the tale of teenagers stealing a body from the morgue as a prank only to resurrect the corpse along with all the other bodies in a nearby cemetery. Don't Panic is a Nightmare On Elm Street riff but with an evil ouija board that possesses a group of friends. Complete with dinosaur pajamas. 

Taken together, these films showcase heaps of gore, zombies, possessions, Satanic rituals and enough moody atmosphere for days. 

Dial Code: Santa Claus aka Deadly Games

Ever wonder what a mashup between Home Alone and Rambo would be like? Well, here's your answer. Kindertrauma in holiday form. 

Fade to Black

Eric Binford is the living embodiment of that 'movie trivia guy' at parties. Dennis Christopher plays his to psychotic perfection. 

SexWorld

Do you like WestWorld? Do you like hardcore films? Boy is this one for you. This is 70s adult cinema at its best. Plenty of sex of course, but also an honest look at the emotional fallout of the character's sexcapades. 

The boys at VS released this in 4K Ultra High Definition so you can see every little bead of sweat. 

'21 Catch-Up: LAMB, Dune, Last Night In Soho, Halloween Kills, TITANE

DUNE

  Thank every God for Denis Villeneuve's direction, Greig Fraser's eye, Tom Brown's art direction, and some of the best CGI ever committed to filmmaking: Dune has some of the most eye-popping visuals I've E V E R seen and evocative, brain-tickling sound design, BUT... some of the most serviceable, whelming writing latched onto it. The narrative isn't boring but it's not all _that_ engaging, either; if it weren't for the imagery and some strong performances (Chalamet, Bardem, Ferguson, Rampling, and Skarsgård [and Momoa who's such an effortlessly charismatic dude]) I would completely forget this movie. Fans of the book seem content with it because they're able to fill in the gaps but for those of us who haven't read it, it's full of esoteric holes and my trypophobic ass can't stomach it. B

LAMB

  Despite its painterly photography, stirring performances, and a typically-great trailer, Lamb is an entire waste of time. It's a great short film stretched to a full-length slog. The tale it's telling is so simple and to-the-point that there's agonizing bits of LITERAL nothing to pad it out; I could have gone to the bathroom (without hurrying back) and I wouldn't have missed anything. There are long, LONG shots of people drinking coffee, reading, or having mundane dinner conversations (don't forget the riveting scene where the dude washes potatoes!). Our two leads have no personality, chemistry, or even conflict whatsoever. The baby lamb girl stuff is funny but it also doesn't add up to much beyond some amusing imagery. The A24 Horror Movie Well has run fucking dry. C-

LAST NIGHT IN SOHO

  Basically the exact inverse of Dune. This helps me forgive Edgar Wright for Baby Driver but it's further proof that he's not gonna reach greatness again without collaborators, I.e. Spaced, the Cornetto Trilogy and Scott Pilgrim. There are numerous set-pieces that, in better hands, would be great to lay eyes on. The problem is Edgar Wright seems content--or worse: confident--to wield hideous CGI to tell that story; it's a fucking *great* story but, visually, it's often indigestible. And, again, is such a shame because the script is really strong and the cast is aces, particularly Anya Taylor-Joy and Terence Stamp. C+

TITANE

  This movie is almost nonstop fucking gorgeous; the second time I watched it I kept pausing it to gawk at the photography; there are so, so many frames from it that could be striking, evocative, fascinating stills unto themselves. It also has a confounding sense of humor, bold structure, and some of the most upsetting onscreen violence I've seen in the past few years. I have so much more to say but there's just too much to get through right now; this is a complex, wholesome, weird, disgusting, audacious, special movie. To paraphrase Ebert: movies like Titane are the reason I love movies. A+

HALLOWEEN KILLS

  I don't HATE this movie, like some fans do, but I definitely don't like it either - not on the whole, anyway. It's a mess but it's not 100% be-all end-all awful. If you're a Halloween fan and you're surprised by a bad sequel, you must be new here; temper your outrage, most of them are garbage with a few things here-and-there to appreciate: the opening credits of 4, the Cookie Woman scene in 5, Busta Rhymes doing the Spider-Man imposter meme in Resurrection, etc. There are pockets in Kills where great side characters are given some memorable, funny, idiosyncratic banter - which was to be expected since that's the best shit from Halloween 2018 (a significantly less-mixed bag). I'd watch a whole Altman-esque hangout comedy, based on Halloween night, featuring all the victims in Michael's path (it makes me want to do a whole post ranking the side characters between the two movies). McBride should stick to what he does best: Comedy. He's made some funny fucking TV doing that but, here, when he tries to be capital-S SERIOUS, it's glaring what his weaknesses are. When he wanted me to laugh, I laughed, but when he wanted me to be scared...I also laughed. Thus my experience with it is crystallized as a good time and I'll never watch it again. C-

Top 100 Horror Films

In August of this year, the UN Climate Report stated 'Code Red for Humanity'. The world is likely to hit 1.5 degrees celsius in the next 20 years. California was literally on fire. Louisiana went through mass flooding. Each summer follows up the next as 'hottest summer on record.' In his book, The Uninhabitable Earth, David Wallace-Wells argues we could lose half of our agriculture yields because of temperature increases alone. Oceans will acidify. The disappearance of fresh water leads one to a conclusion that water will become the new oil. Because of the water scarcity, conflict between nations will increase considerably. 

So, what is the point of horror when confronted with the oncoming ecological collapse of society? To have something so existentially large cast a shadow over any boogeyman these directors and writers throw at us? 

To put it in a scientific way, seeking out what scares us provides a counterbalance to life's stresses. Some say it's a type of exposure therapy. The more we experience anxiety triggers in a controlled way, the thinking goes, the more we're able to deal with our anxiety responses in the world. Another theory was developed by Margee Kerr, a "sociologist who studies fear". Her explanation was that watching scary movies temporarily floods the nervous system with a cocktail of neurotransmitters and hormones, from dopamine to adrenaline, yielding mood boosting euphoria. The effect is not unlike riding a rollercoaster. 

Horror through the years has been born out of our anxieties with society at that point in time. 

Postwar horror dealt with fallout of atomic radiation. Giant ants and godzilla. The monsters were out there. Paranoia- fueled McCarthyism only dumped gasoline on this fire. Then came the 60s with Psycho, Peeping Tom and Black Sunday. Horror started to take itself seriously again. This seriousness only metastisized into what became the late 60s and 70s. Where the images of Vietnam were on news channels across the nation. John Carpenter mentioned there are two kinds of horror. Imagine a tribe sitting around a campfire and the chief of the tribe stands up and says the beast is out there. This is right wing horror. Now imagine sitting around that same campfire and the chief gets up and says the beast is in us. That is left wing horror. It is the latter that dominated the 70s. 

Then came Reagan. 

It's no mystery the 80s saw the rise of Jason and Freddy, the return (and revenge) of Michael, and introduced us to Chucky. External horror. Or as Carpenter points out- 'right-wing horror'. 

The two months exclusively watching horror movies had me come to terms with what I like. Gothic castles joined my other hot button words like witches, and cults. Delivered in a variety of flavors of course: Hammer horror always felt like stuffy British movies to showcase costumes and sets. AMC's FearFest always played Horror of Dracula in their marathons and it was always a chance to flip channels or go to the kitchen and whip up something to eat. Me being an immature shit, I pined for more Jason, less Dracula. "It's not nearly gory enough and the body count isn't high." It wasn't until later I got bored of visiting the same campsite, the same house on Haddonfield or checking in on 1428 Elm Street. None of these franchises were actually scary. But their ill received follow ups offered unique antidotes to the poisons they carried: A New Beginning, Freddy's Revenge, Season of the Witch.

And yet, I digress. The classics like Frankenstein, Wolf Man, Dracula and Creature For the Black Lagoon should be no more vulnerable from criticism than Halloween. In fact, nothing should be off the table. That's not the problem. The problem I see with horror geekdom is that it's a "one or the other". There is either a rejection of anything past 1970 or a rejection of anything after 1970. This can be whittled down to a generational thing. 

Mood, atmosphere and gothic storytelling have overtaken the slasher film for me. Witches, cults, demons, exorcism and haunted houses are just more interesting. If we're talking aesthetics, Dracula's castle will always be sexier than Crystal Lake. Frankenstein's lab is more ominous than the streets of Haddonfield. 

The Frankenstein series from Hammer is the perfect entry point for people who struggle getting into Hammer. Don't let them fool you with their uptight British reputation. There's vile shit going on in them. They set a mood that is the heartbeat of October. 

The American International Pictures Corman/Price Poe cycle is another movie series I've tackled this season. Tomb of Ligeia and The Masque of the Red Death in particular. Two more examples of why Vincent Price might be the greatest human being to ever live. 

Hangin' with the boys during spooky season has become a tradition. 

I started on the wild and crazy road to Paul Naschy with Inquisition and Horror Rises From the Tomb. The Untold Story stopped me in my tracks with it's cobination of vicious brutality and keystone cops humor. Evil Dead Trap, a film I always heard about but never watched, was finally ticked off the list and was well worth the wait. Xtro blew my mind in it's feverish, batshit, throw-narrative-out-the-window creativity. A Woman's Torment, Robert Findlay's take on Repulsion, helped bridge a gap to genres I didn't think of having a bridge: hardcore sex films and psychological thrillers. Mike Flanagan's Midnight Mass, well...It's safe to say it's in the top 3 pieces of media of the 20's. 

Between all these discoveries, September/October 2021 will go down as one of my favorite Halloween seasons precisely because of this. To answer the question posed at the beginning, "what is the point of horror given the climate change crisis?" If it means coming to terms with the dystopian hellscape we're living in, then so be it. Once upon a time, I watched horror to get scared. What I found out is that the more I watched, the less afraid I became. Call it desensitization. Call it a lack of trying on part of the director/write. Hell, it can be both. Maybe the science is right: the dopamine and adrenaline is flowing. Every once in a while I'll come across a movie that's special and actually does give me goosebumps. A couple years ago, the other two writers on this blog pressed me to watch Savageland. A movie I never heard of. So I watched it and was left rattled. Here was a movie not even on my radar.

We have our collective backs up against a wall of shit and there doesn't seem to be any opening in it. Watching a movie isn't burying your head in the sand or 'ignoring the problem'. The problem is bigger than any one person. So lock the doors, turn out the lights and watch a scary movie. It's good for ya! 

Enough of my yammering. Now onto the list. 

The one thing I would want anyone to take away from any list I make, is a movie they never saw before. To turn someone onto a film you love is a high I always chase. There's nothing wrong with wanting to watch The Exorcist for the 1,739th time. But to simply sit back and say "I've hit a ceiling with what I like and don't feel the need to explore the genre" is the type of thing that makes me run the other way. As horror fans, or fans of any genre, we should always be digging through the mines of the past to see what shiny new gems we can come up with. The kind that make us scream "Holy shit I'm gonna cum!". 

Or you can just complain how your favorite movie isn't included. Whatever. 

Below are a list of films that have either rotated in and out of the list through the years or just missed the cut. 

The Phantom Carriage (1921), Haxan: Witchcraft For the Ages (1924), The Seventh Victim (1943), The Curse of Frankenstein (1957), Blood and Black Lace (1964), All the Colors of the Dark (1972), Tales From the Crypt (1972),  Horror Rises From the Tomb (1973), Sisters (1973), A Virgin Among the Living Dead (1973), Deathdream (1974), The Living Dead At Manchester Morgue (1974), Lips of Blood (1975), The House With Laughing Windows (1976), Alucarda (1977), Beyond the Darkness (1979), Don't Go In the House (1980), Dead and Buried (1981), Der Fan (1982), The Entity (1982), Halloween: Season of the Witch (1982), Next of Kin (1982), Xtro (1982), Sole Survivor (1984), Friday the 13th Pt. V: A New Beginning (1985), Phenomena (1985), The Fly (1986), From Beyond (1986), Anguish (1987), Blood Rage (1987), The Gate (1987), Near Dark (1987), A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987), Prince of Darkness (1987), Slugs (1988), Misery (1990), Cemetery Man (1994), In the Mouth of Madness (1994), Wes Craven's New Nightmare (1994), Ringu (1998), The Mist (2007), REC (2007), Trick R Treat (2007), Lake Mungo (2008), The House of the Devil (2009), The Innkeepers (2011), Lords of Salem (2012), The Babadook (2014), It Follows (2014), The Blackcoat's Daughter (2015), The Wailing (2016), Gerald's Game (2017), Terrified (2017), Suspiria (2018), Doctor Sleep (2019), The Empty Man (2020), Barbarian (2022), Nope (2022), Pearl (2022)