We were all saddened to see cancer claim one of the true titans of the horror genre, Wes Craven. Craven created classics in three separate decades and continued to make films well into his 70's, ending on a high note with the return to the series that helped solidify his status as a horror legend in SCREAM 4. He may be gone but he certainly will not be forgotten...but maybe some of his films will be. With this poll was ask you what the most underrated Wes Craven film is, and we hope you'll post a response explaining why you made the choice you did. Apologies to MUSIC OF THE HEART fan(s), there were only 10 poll options. If you dig any of his TV movies let us know, those never get any talk.
Well it certainly isn't "My Soul To Take" lol - but I went with Deadly Blessing. And I am embarrassed to admit I did not know until now that Wes Craven directed Swamp Thing. Watched it all the time as a kid on HBO and had the uncut version of it on dvd. Shame on me....
Swamp Thing has always been my favorite of his. Honestly, I've never been a Wes Craven fan. He has more than earned his place in horror history, but as far as the "Masters of Horror" go I never wished to revisit his films all that often. But his demise caught me as much by surprise as anybody else.
I went with Serpent, though I'd actually say that New Nightmare is my favorite of his films and I'm pretty sure that one is also underrated. Or at least, I don't know of a lot of people who have actually seen it as most got pretty burned out on the franchise by the time it rolled around. But, outside of a couple of silly set-pieces, I think it's one of his best concepts.
Deadly Blessing. It missed the boat by a hair in being a cult classic. I could never warm up to Shocker no matter how many times I watch it. My Soul to Take isn't great by any means but it is starting to grow on me.
Invitation to Hell I've always really liked and think is very underrated. It's a TV movie, but a damned good one. Summer of Fear is also quite good, but not on the list.
Voted for Hills Part 2, as it's really a lot of fun. But Deadly Blessing is a great film that needs further recognition. I even love the wacky ending.
Deadly Blessing. The film just has a really creepy quality to it and who could forget the spider scene. It is one of my all time favorite Craven films.
People Under the Stairs for sure, although I also enjoy Serpent and the Rainbow, Swamp Thing, and Hills 2. The rest in the list are mediocre to terrible (just watched Deadly Friend for the first time actually last night - yeeesh...).
I voted Deadly Blessing. Loved it since I saw it as a teen, great cast and a solid story that deviated from the standard slasher formula so prevalent at the time. The theme of religious extremism and cultism as explored in the film was always a fascinating angle to me. I also love Berryman as the simpleton, repressed pervert. Probably my favorite Scream Factory Blu-Ray. I must also admit to a fondness for Swamp Thing, had the uncut boobalicious VHS tape as a youth and watched it endlessly. As weird as this may sound, alongside Superman II (Christopher Reeve, Margot Kidder), it's probably my favorite comic book adaptation. Then again I'm not a huge fan of the super hero genre or comic books, so... Hills 2 and Vampire in Brooklyn are alright by me as well.
This list is incomplete- Scream 3 and Cursed should be here. Can most of us agree Scream 3 is better than Vampire in Brooklyn? Yeah, so it belongs on the list. If "Most Underrated" means his best film unfairly treated to shit status, we have to look at the mainstream's reaction to The Last House on the Left. Which does not mirror its status with horror fans. (Although, these are certainly the same fans who loved to toss in a "And Aja's remake of The Hills Have Eyes is so much better than the original.") (Dudes- it's debatable whether the Maniac remake was superior to the original. And that should be a much easier conclusion to come to.) If we can extend this definition to the horror fan community, Hills might also be a worthy contender for this title. However, if "Most Underrated" means that no one ever gave it a fair shake and it deserves one- Cursed. I was outright shocked at how that film was at least half of what Scream 4 should have been. (By the way, Scream 4 was fucking terrible.) Cursed picks up almost right where Scream 3 left off in terms of the Hollywood Insider / entertainment industry subplots. And it's fun. How much fun? Well, just enough that the CGI didn't bother me. Well- the transformation scene bothered me. But the stuff with the bitten neck and the dog werewolf didn't bother me at all. The cast is just fantastic. They easily overpower the spotty writing (which need I remind is the way it is because of studio tampering and desperation over losing about a dozen cast members).
People Under The Stairs is by far the best movie on that list, but Deadly Blessing is probably the most underrated. Although based on the response here, maybe it isn't as underrated as I thought it was? People barely ever spoke about it before Arrow and Scream Factory released it.
hills have eyes part II for me. people say it is craven's worst film but i have to disagree my soul to take or cursed gets the vote for craven's worst
I went with The People Under The Stairs. I REALLY hated it when I saw it during its original theatrical run. It wasn't what I expected and I couldn't get past the obvious flaws. So I never revisited it until recently. After that 2nd viewing I think it's more of a good movie with a few blatant issues than a bad one. There really isn't a close second for me. I find the latter part of The Serpent and the Rainbow unwatchable. Deadly Blessing is a guilty pleasure at best. I often enjoy seeing great stars of the past "slumming" in genre pics. But seeing Borgnine in that phony beard just makes me sad. All hail Everett McGill in his gimp suit. I have a feeling that made a big impression on QT, too.
Complete agreement. Blessing for me is really missing any actual atmosphere, the ending and the ridiculous twist have no buildup or context, it feels like a made-for-TV movie, and the characters are dull. And this is coming from someone who is almost not afraid to call themselves a Sharon Stone fan. Her issues with Craven on-set truly seeped into the final product- she shows her clear resentment at not knowing what she's doing or why she is doing it every time something "strange" happens. Which actually at one point involves her pouring red liquid from a milk carton into a glass... It's just an open carton of milk with red liquid inside. That wouldn't freak me out. That wouldn't freak anyone out after the mid-1960's. Maybe. Food coloring is kind of easy to come by. Serpent has some tonal spottiness but it's such a good scareshow movie. It should be silly, it throws so many horror cliches and tropes at the screen, but it's so beautifully perfect - so artfully done (even if it comes off as schlocky) - that it never lets me out of its grip. It helps that the actors are so good and so damn committed. Again: this was the late 80's. It's either this or shit like Night of the Demons or Witchcraft or Ghosthouse or Witchery or The Kiss or The Horror Show or Return to Salem's Lot or House II or Hellbound or... It could have a lot worse, is what I'm saying.
Serpent and the Rainbow, with Deadly Blessing a close second. I like how Serpent explores zombies in human terms (don't get me wrong, I like regular undead zombies as well), and I enjoy the colourful Caribbean setting. Plus, that scene where a woman breaks off a piece of a wine glass with her teeth and swallows it really startled me the first time I saw it. Blessing has a nicely little twist (well, two twists, actually), some good jump scares, and a great cast, including Michael Berryman and a particularly disagreeable Ernest Borgnine. I want to like People Under the Stairs, particularly because it re-teams Everett McGill and Wendy Robie, but honestly, the last time I saw it, I couldn't get into it.
