In honor and anticipation of Halloween, a few students reflected on what films creep them out better than any other. Here, the staff of The Mustang student newspaper and ASWNMU Attorney General weigh in on what to watch over Halloweekend.
Anna Daggett, “Jeepers Creepers” (2001)
For me personally, “Jeepers Creepers” is one of the best horror movies made to date. Its originality combines pop-up scares with long suspenseful themes, and the perfect amount of gore. There is even a level of sci-fi to it, as a woman named Jez seems to know a unique amount of things about the Creeper. Perhaps the best part of the film is the song indicating that the creature is not only near, but that he has found a new target as well. The iconic movie and theme song has been gracing radio stations and home TV’s for the past 16 years and proves that it doesn’t have to be Halloween for evil to be lurking….
Katia Ibarra, “Psycho” (1960)
“Psycho” is of course the film with the classic killing-in-the-shower scene, which brought a wave of paranoia to viewers from the 1960s all the way to present day.
I watched “Psycho” recently, and it is an instant horror classic for its vintage black and white imagery, suspenseful scenes (and the soundtrack that comes with them) and fascinatingly handsome Norman Bates. Besides, the movie’s final plot twist will seriously leave you with something to think about.
In addition to suspense and gore, story and character are essential things for me to consider a horror movie good, so to speak, and “Psycho” has it all.
Eric Lowe, “Evil Dead II” (1987)
The story starts as many scary stories do. A young couple, Ash and Linda, head out to a cabin in the woods to on a nice weekend getaway. Unfortunately, after stumbling upon a book that has been bound in human flesh and inked in blood, Linda is possessed by a nefarious foul-mouthed demon and Ash is forced to cut her head off and bury her out behind the cabin—and that’s just the first 10 minutes. What follows is an epic, insane and gory adventure.
While there had been other films that previously blended humor with horror, such as 1985’s “Return of the Living Dead,” 1982’s “Slumber Party Massacre” and the majority of the “Nightmare on Elm Street” series, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell’s “Evil Dead II” perfected the craft and set the bar for future generations to try and emulate.
Thomas Durham, “30 Days of Night” (2007)
ASWNMU Attorney General and Horror movie aficionado Thomas Durham offers his opinion.
This modern vampire tale is based on a graphic novel and deserves inclusion in a favorite horror film selection because this contemporary version of a Vampire story achieves the incredibly difficult task of re-imagining the vampire as a metamorphosed human that has effectively become a different species. We all know the classic vampire, and the gothic, and these days the romantic tween version, but “30 Days of Night” throws all of these styles out the window. The amount of thought that went into the design of these is such that they defy easy categorization right off the bat, which when it comes to vampires, is no easy feat.
Read the staff’s full rationale for selecting these chilling hits on The Mustang and, while you’re at it, let them know what your favorite spooky movie is.