Shocktober: Terrifying Tunes

What’s a horror movie without a bone chilling score? Something to set the mood or heighten the suspense. I don’t have a lot of soundtracks on my ipod but out of what I do have, I don’t think you’d be surprised to hear that they’re primarily on the creepy side. From the classical scores of the golden age to the experimental synths of the 70s and 80s, there’s loads of great scores to choose from. Though I’ll only list films I’ve seen, I’ve certainly heard some compelling cuts from some other freaky flicks. So before I begin how about I briefly acknowledge a few of them.

– The Beyond (1981) by Fabio Frizzi
– Deep Red (1975) by Goblin
– Rosemary’s Baby (1967) by Krzysztof Komeda
– Carrie (1976 by) Pino Donaggio
– The Shining (1980) by Wendy Carlos and Rachel Elkind

And now on to my terrifying ten.


10. Poltergeist (1982)
Composer: Jerry Goldsmith

Not a big fan of the movie but I love the effects and veteran composer Jerry Goldsmith’s score. This melancholy tune with a nursery rhyme like chorus (much in the sam vain as the theme from Rosemary’s Baby) gives Poltergeist that moody and unsettling feel.


9. Zombi 2 (1979)
Composer: Fabio Frizzi

Italy’s answer to Dawn of the Dead may be kind of a shlocky production but it makes up for it’s shortcomings with some great effects and an excellent 70s synth score from Fabio Frizzi. Full of eerie old school synths and beat machines (basically the kind of stuff AJ likes) it’s my opinion that the soundtrack makes this movie. I love listening to it this time of the season.. but not watching the movie, once was enough.


8. Suspiria (1977)
Composer: Goblin and Dario Argento

Though this atmospheric film makes absolutely no sense, it’s shot magnificently and it’s score by progressive rock band Goblin is terrifyingly awesome. Goblin (known for providing lots of spook-tacular scores back in the day) makes use of primarily more organic instruments for this flick about black magic. Mandolins, glockenspiel and all sorts of inventive percussion, not to mention some disturbing whispery like vocals on the main theme almost make this movie worth watching.


7. The Exorcist (1973)
Composer: Jack Nitzsche, Mike Oldfield

Ahh “Tubular Bells” a theme I love so much I used a crappy midi version in my “Slaughter Man” trailer. “Christplotation” films are always well complimented by classical scores and this one is an excellent entry. Sends chills down my spine just thinking about it.


6. Dawn of the Dead (1978)
Composer: Goblin

A surprisingly upbeat score (aside from your usual horror flared hook) from Goblin, Dawn of the Dead is probably the group’s most defining and memorable score. I mean if it was never composed, what would Paul listen to when he played x-box?


5. The Thing (1982)
Composer: Ennio Morricone

Bleak, simplistic and brooding, it’s a weird thinking of famed western composer Ennio Morricone working with synthesizers but by god he does it. This is one of my favorite all time movies but if it didn’t have this score? Hmm, I don’t know it really sets the mood.


4. The Omen (1976)
Composer: Jerry Goldsmith

Out of a whole career of classic scores who would of thought that The Omen would give Jerry Goldsmith his only oscar. Though I’m not surprised considering the epic, brooding quality of this Devilish latin infused chant. I mean this really does sound like the kind of music Satan would listen to. The song’s refrain “Sanguis bibimus, corpus edimus, tolle corpus Satani” literally translates to “We drink the blood, we eat the flesh, raise the body of Satan”. I mean that’s bad ass, that’s like some Nick Erwin shit there.


3. Halloween (1978)
Composer: John Carpenter

Filmmaker John Carpenter (the son of musicians) has done a lot of scores in his career. Some good, some bad but I don”t think anyone will disagree with the genius that is Halloween’s score. Dark and choppy piano’s perfectly set the mood for this suburban thriller and really give it that unsettling tone.


2. Jaws (1975)
Composer: John Williams

I’m always on the fence whether or not Jaws is a horror film but one thing is for sure… That is one hell of a scary score. Perhaps the most talented film composer of all time, John Williams’ music more or less was the film’s antagonist. Can you imagine what this would of been like without that “Duh duh, duh duh” as we watch from under the water. This score made this film.


1. Psycho (1960)
Composer: Bernard Hermann

Legendary for it’s intenseness and sharp piercing sound. This is not only one of the best horror scores, it’s one of the best movie scores period. I don’t know what else to say, it scares the shit out of me.

Shocktober: Re-animated

Remakes are as rampant and numerous as ever in this day and age of Hollywood. Most of the time I’m against the idea but every once in awhile I think there’s a completely logical reason to remake a film. You can improve upon technical aspects or expand upon certain ideas but it’s not something that should be taken carelessly, which unfortunately it often is. So I thought it might be good for a laugh to do a list of the five best and worst remakes along with five freaky flicks that I believe should be remade.

Five Best Horror Remakes

5. The Ring (2003)
I’ve never seen the original Japanese version but I’ve always enjoyed it’s overseas counterpart. From it’s gloomy Washington setting to some good scares all wrapped up in a good story, The Ring is probably the only good horror movie from that brief period where the U.S. became obsessed with remaking Japanese horror films.


4. Nosferatu The Vampyre (1979)
A film that doesn’t stray to far from the original idea, Werner Herzog’s late seventies homage to F.W. Murnau is creepy, atmospheric and well acted thanks to the legendary eccentric actor Klaus Kinski. Interestingly enough the characters here now have the same names as the character’s from Bram Stoker’s Dracula novel. You see F.W. Murnau couldn’t obtain the rights back in the 20s but by the 70s Dracula had entered the public domain, neat stuff.


3. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
The original is a sci-fi/horror classic but I think this is one of those rare cases where I like the remake even more. Where the original came out during the peak of cold ward paranoia this version reflects the zeitgeist of the 70s. Moving the setting from a suburban California town to a bustling San Francisco this film is very well made and quite disturbing. Plus, how can you go wrong when you have Donal Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum and Leonard Nimoy all in the same film?


2. The Fly (1986)
Aside from the premise this gory 80s re-visioning is an entirely different film. David Cronenberg takes “body horror” to new heights as Jeff Goldblum gradually mutates from man to fly after an experiment. Disgusting makeup effects by Chris Walas and clever visual effects make this creature feature one to be reckoned with.


1. The Thing (1982)
A more faithful adaptation of John W. Campbell’s short story, The Thing is radically different from The Thing From Another World. Yes it still keeps the chilling arctic setting and the themes of isolation and paranoia but visually it truly breaks the mold. Rob Bottin’s nightmarish special effects are stunning and still hold up battling a talented cast of characters. Ennio Morricone’s score is simple yet chilling and only adds to the film’s bleak nature… But god I hope they don’t remake this again.

Five Worst Horror Remakes
There’s been a lot but really I can only discuss the one’s I’ve seen. Luckily, it was enough to fill this out.


5. The Hitcher (2007)
The original isn’t a great movie but at least it was suspenseful. Aside from Sean Bean this has absolutely nothing going in it’s favor. People will just remake anything I guess.


4. House on Haunted Hill (1999)
No more than a loose re-imagining of the original. It’s like they just took the title and made up some incredibly bad and cliche ghost story to go along with it. Oh yeah and it’s got Chris Kattan, nuff said.


3. The Omen (2006)
One of the worst effects a remake can have is tainting the legacy of the original film. This one really pisses me off as it seems every time I mention “The Omen” everyone thinks I’m talking about this piece of shit. Where the original was a dark, gruesome and well acted delving into the “christploitation” genre, this film was no more than a cheap cash in. Very few changes are made but that’s just a highlight of it’s lack of inventiveness… I banish this film to burn in hell.


2. House of Wax (2005)
I haven’t seen all of it but I think I’ve seen enough to declare this god awful. Did anyone really think that a movie that starred Chad Michael Murray and Paris Hilton would be good? Aside from the fact that there’s a bunch of dead people in wax this has absolutely nothing to do with the original version.


1. Halloween
I think I’ve talked enough about my hatred for this movie on the internet. I don’t know what else is to be said. Bad characters, writing, acting, everything. This is beyond bad!

Five Horror Movies I’d Like to See Remade


5. The Legend of Hell House (1973)
I hear Richard Matheson’s novel version is a lot darker and more brutal. I always feel like this film lacked something and would love to see it tackled once more.


4. Salem’s Lot (1979)
Tobe Hooper’s 70s miniseries adaptation of Stephen King’s classic is fine but I’d love to see this spooky vampire story updated. Plus I think you could get a better star than the guy who played Hutch on the original Starsky and Hutch.


3. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
I have no beef with silent film’s being remade and I think this today could be a real trip. Maybe expand upon the idea and add some great new effects. Sounds like a good Tim Burton project… Or maybe a bad one. He’s real hit or miss these days.


2. London After Midnight (1927)
Directed by Tod Browning and starring Lon Chaney, London After Midnight is perhaps the most infamous lost film ever made. It sounds like a lot of people know the basic story behind this eerie murder story, so why doesn’t someone take a crack at it? I’ve always felt like I’m missing out (seeing as the last copy of the film was destroyed in a fire in 1965) so maybe this would ease the pain.


1. The Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
Aside from the great creature design, I’ve never really been a fan of the film but have always loved the idea. I’ve heard this has been attempted many times (though no more than a few screenplays floating around) so hopefully this monster/adventure film will get a reboot someday.

Shocktober: Intro


Well it’s almost Halloween so I suppose I better whip up some holiday themed posts. Last year on my own blog I reviewed 31 horror movies in 31 days but I just didn’t see enough movies to do that again. So here’s one terrifying week of horror movie themed lists. I’m thinking it will go a little bit like this.

Monday – Intro/Lists about horror remakes
Tuesday – Top ten horror movie scores
Wednesday – Best horror Sequels
Thursday – Top ten horror filmmakers
Friday – Retrospective of one of my favorite horror movie franchises
Saturday – Top ten horror movies of the 2000s

I don’t know but these are the best topics I could think of with such little time before the big day. Perhaps I’ll add more posts to this if I’m up to it. If anyone else wants to post anything related to halloween then go ahead my children of the night.

Off the Charts

Uncharted 2: Among Thieves

I sure am glad that this is the year I decided to get a PS3.  Last spring I got my hands on the PlayStation exclusive that looked best to me, Uncharted (what can I say, Metal Gear Solid 4 intimidated me).  That was a great game, a fun story with competent gameplay and top-notch graphics.  Now its sequel is here and it blows its competent predecessor, along with pretty much every other game, away.

The first few hours of Among Thieves are about is good as video gaming can be right now.  I’ll tell you why.  On one level, the graphics are spectacular.  This might be the best looking game that a person can buy right now.  On another, the story is really good for a game.  It’s kind of an Indiana Jones-esque story about the quest for Shambhala (Shangri-la) complete with a love triangle, nazis and supernatural monsters.  It’s a lot of fun, especially thanks to some really enjoyable writing and top-notch voice acting and mo-cap.

The playing of Uncharted 2 is a vastly improved experience as well.  Enemies are fun to fight and need a much more reasonable number of bullets to take down.  Hand-to-hand combat is a lot better.  The puzzle levels are fewer and easier, and the climbing is somehow more enjoyable too.  Naughty Dog took everything that didn’t work about the original and made it work.

Obviously, the game is not perfect.  It couldn’t be.  The latter part is not up to the quality of the beginning of the game.  It’s a little frustrating that you cannot run out of melee combat whenever you want.  There are maybe a couple instances where what you need to do is a little vague.  But when an experience is this good, you just don’t care.

Playing through the single player is a good enough time to justify this purchase.  When you’ve done that, there are plenty of unlockables to invest in to keep you coming back.  Furthermore, Naughty Dog has added in a complete multiplayer suite, with all the co-op and competitive modes you’d expect from a modern game.

Seriously, if you have access to a PlayStation 3, you need to get this game.  If you don’t have one, start saving.

The System is Down

Yeah I beat the system… Though not really. Remember how Warner Music Group muted any videos on Youtube that had music they owned? Well apparently things have transpired since then to fix that shit and I’m now proud to say, all of my videos now have their audio back. A new feature must of been installed at some point to dispute the muting and now you can simply contact Youtube, explaining how you’ve fairly and legally used the music and it’ll be fixed anywhere from a few hours to a few minutes.

So how did this come about for me? I was just browsing around the web when for some reason I pondered “I wonder what ever happened to that WMG/Youtube fiasco?” So I did some research and found a handful of videos and tutorials put together by fellow You-tubers on how to reverse this problem. I don’t know when it came about but I’m so very glad that it did.

So if you have any videos that fell victim to all that copyrighted musical bullshit, then nows the time to take action. Personally I found this tutorial video very helpful. I’m so very glad to see that Youtube and me are on good terms again, Otteni out.

T3: Guilty Pleasures

It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything substantial, and I don’t really feel like doing an album review, it seems we haven’t had a whole lot more than reviews lately, so I thought I’d dust off an old favorite, the T3. Anyways, lately I’ve been reading the book High Fidelity, so I keep having the urge to make a bunch of lists that display my musical credibility. So instead I thought I’d do the opposite and indulge in what are most commonly referred to as “guilty pleasures”. These are the musical artists that really don’t have a whole lot of artistic credibility, but are nonetheless the kind of music you find yourself singing along to despite hating yourself for it. I’m sure we all have those certain artists that we hate to love, but these are the ones that make me feel the guiltiest.

10. Abba
Not gonna lie, I have the sudden urge to dance everytime “Dancing Queen” comes on the radio at Red Apple, I’m sure that’s among gayest things you’ve ever heard, but it’s true. Add that to other classics like “Fernando”, “Waterloo”, and “Mamma Mia” and you’ve got the greatest thing to ever come out of Sweden ever.

9. Foreigner
Foreigner is just one of those bands that rocked, in a sort of cheesy way, mostly due to their lyrics and combination of heavy riffs and synths. Of course like most hard rock artists of the ’70s, they eventually became just straight-up whimpy in the ’80s with songs like “I Wanna Know What Love Is”, and “Waiting For A Girl Like You”. But they’ll always have rockin’ hits like “Cold As Ice”, “Hot Blooded”, and “Double Vision” for their never-ending reunion tours.

8. Journey
Definitely a perennial favorite as far as guilty pleasures go, they’d probably be higher if it wasn’t for all those lame people that think they’re funny or something ’cause they know the first verse of “Don’t Stop Believin'”. However, it’s hard to deny the sheer awesomeness of Steve Perry’s vocal wailing on songs like “Anyway you Want It” and “Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin'”. Also, I have a hard time admitting it, but “Lights” might be my favorite song about San Francisco.

7. Bon Jovi
I know Bon Jovi’s sort of played by now, but c’mon, “Livin’ On A Prayer” is pretty much the definition of cheesy ’80s anthem. And you gotta respect a band that’s still able to crank out guilty pleasure songs like “It’s My Life” or “Have A Nice Day” two decades after releasing Slippery When Wet.

6. The Monkees
Though they’re sort of different from the other artists on the list I still think they belong. Sure they were really gimmicky, and about as harmless as a rock band could get, and didn’t write or play on most of their songs, but it’s still hard to deny how good some of their songs were. I mean “I’m A Believer”, “Last Train To Clarksville”, and “Daydream Believer”, are all excellent examples of what a great ’60s pop single sounds like.

5. Boston
There was a time in my life when I would’ve said there’s nothing wrong with liking Boston, now I know that I was a little confused. I’m not saying Boston’s bad or anything, but they certainly didn’t create music that was daring, original, or really anything more than really catchy pop with a bit of a “hard rock edge”, but that hasn’t stopped me from continuing to listen to their seminal debut.

4. Meat Loaf
Sometimes you just want to listen to something that rocks really really really hard, and is also really epic and almost operatic in a way, and also has some tenderness to it. The solution to that kind of instance is putting on Bat Out Of Hell by Meat Loaf.

3. Hall & Oates
I’m sure most people wouldn’t rate this pop duo as highly as far as guilty pleasures go, but I have to admit I’m a pretty big closet Hall & Oates fan. I probably would know well over half of the songs on any Hall & Oates greatest hits CD despite never listening to any of their albums, I think some of it has to do with the fact that Red Apple always played hella Hall & Oates. Plus, they just have a shitload of catchy songs, “You Make My Dreams Come True”, “Private Eyes”, “She’s Gone”, “Rich Girl”, “Maneater”, “Kiss On My List”, the list goes on and on and on.

2. Rush
Nancy would probably be a little pissed off at me putting Canada’s ultimate power trio on this list, but face it, they’re not the easiest band to take seriously. I think this is mostly due to Neil Peart’s overly philosophical lyrics, but that’s perfectly alright when so many of their songs rock so hard, and the fact they’re all among the most gifted rock musicians doesn’t hurt either. Also, I’m not sure what to make of the fact that I never really embraced Rush until I played a bunch of their songs in Rock Band.

1. Kiss
To quote Kenneth Adkins III, “How can anyone possibly like Kiss?”, well the best answer I can come up with is because I guess we all need a reason to rock and roll all night and party every day. The make-up, the merchandise, the pyrotechnic live shows, it’s all ridiculous, but it’s all awesome. Their songs have little to no artistic merit, but sometimes the world just needs songs containing big heavy riffs and metaphors that allude to the male reproductive organ.

Born to Be Wild


Where the Wild Things Are

The long awaited adaptation of a children’s classic, Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are has finally been brought to the silver screen. Said to be “un-filmable” for many years, director Spike Jonze finally took on the project in 2005 and well, here we are now.

I think we all know the story of Max, a rambunctious kid who after being sent to his room travels to a fantasy world inhabited by all sorts of “wild things”. Personally I’ve never been a big fan of the book and if you ask me, it wouldn’t be the success that it is if it didn’t have such great illustrations. I think it’s the book’s message or lack thereof that’s over the years, left me uninterested. Something about overcoming anger and your emotions but nothing that deeply philosophical. Thus it’s on-screen adaptation struggles in what it wants to say. There’s a lot of conflict and problems going on but it feels unorganized and the lack of resolution only drags it down further.

Though I feel fairly let down by the somewhat bland plot I can’t deny that this film looks incredible. The beautiful cinematography truly takes you to another world and the Wild Things are stunning creations, seamlessly blending CGI with good ol’ fashioned puppet suits from who else but the Jim Henson Workshop. The whimsical score by Karen O and Carter Burwell also helps set the mood, though I’ll have to blow my brains out if I here one person talk about “Oh man I got to buy that soundtrack I’m so cool and hip, blah, blah, blah.”

I think the main problem is that Spike and company didn’t take enough risks in attempting to stray from the original story. Usually I prefer film adaptations of books to remain loyal but here I would of liked to see something different. There’s really not a lot to work with regarding the source material (It’s like what, ten sentences long?) so I’d say this should of been treated as an opportunity to take the story in a different direction. Instead we ended up with nothing more than some pleasant eye candy for the whole family.