Trying to convert someone to a horror lover

12-31-2000, 07:05 AM

I was talking to a guy at work who is 22. He has just gotten a dvd player for Christmas and was wanting to borrow one of my dvds to watch as he only has Gladiator. I told him I mostly had horror out of my 130 dvds. I showed him my list of dvds and he said he couldn't believe I didn't have "really" scary movies like Stigmata. He then asked what Salem's Lot,Carrie, and Army of Darkness were among others! He does not know what a damn good horror movie is and I want to convert him to a REAL horror fan. Below is listed all my horror dvds which one should I let him borrow? I don't want to turn him off but onto horror so that I can finally have a friend who has the same taste in movies as me. Everyone here in Virginia I know thinks I am weird when I mention one of my movies because they have never heard of most of them...
AMITYVILLE HORROR, THE
ARMY OF DARKNESS
BAY OF BLOOD
BEYOND, THE (LIMITED EDITION TIN)
BLACK CHRISTSMAS
BOOGEY MAN / DEVONSVILLE TERROR
CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST
CANNIBAL MAN
CANNIBAL FEROX
CARNIVAL OF SOULS / HORROR HOTEL
CARRIE
CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD
DAY OF THE DEAD
DEAD ALIVE
DEEP BLUE SEA
DEEP RED
DON’T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT
DON'T GO IN THE HOUSE
END OF DAYS
EVIL DEAD
EVIL DEAD 2 DEAD BY DAWN
EXORCIST, THE
FRIDAY THE 13TH
FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 2
FRIGHT NIGHT
FUNHOUSE, THE
GARGOYLES
HALLOWEEN (RESTORED EDITION)
HALLOWEEN 2
HALLOWEEN 3
HELLBOUND HELLRAISER 2
HELLRAISER
INFERNO
JAWS
LET SLEEPING CORPSES LIE
MANIAC
NEW YORK RIPPER
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD
NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET COLLECTION
NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET
NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 2 FREDDY’S REVENGE
NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3 DREAM WARRIORS
NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4 THE DREAM MASTER
NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 5 THE DREAM CHILD
FREDDY’S DEAD THE FINAL NIGHTMARE
WES CRAVEN’S NEW NIGHTMARE
THE NIGHTMARE SERIES DVD ENCYCLOPEDIA
PHANTASM
PHENOMENA
PIECES
PIRANHA
PROM NIGHT
ROSEMARY’S BABY
SALEM’S LOT
SCREAM (DELUXE COLLECTORS EDITION)
SENTINEL, THE
SEVEN
SHINING, THE
SIXTH SENSE
SLEEPY HOLLOW
SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE
STIR OF ECHOES
TENEBRE
TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, THE
TOURIST TRAP
TRILOGY OF TERROR
TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE (ON PREORDER)
ZOMBIE

[This message has been edited by betterdan (edited 12-31-2000).]

mutleyhyde · 12-31-2000, 07:18 AM

This guy sounds like a "modernite". I can't stand it when people go "oh, that's old." I'm serious, I fucking hate that. There was this chick at my last job that was into all the new horror stuff (Stir of Echoes, Stigmata, etc...) but when it came to the classics, she just "didn't do" black & white or anything before the 90's for that matter. I'd say find out if your friend is a modernite or not, then that may narrow your choice down a bit. If he is, let him borrow a few newer titles, then try opening his eyes to the classics (after you've gained his cinematic trust). By the way, there was this other chick at my last job that was totally into all of it; old, new - the gorier the better. I'm not shitting you, she dug New York Ripper!?! She was cool, but married. Damn!

------------------
"When I go to confession, I don't offer God small sins - petty squables, jealousies - I offer him sins worth forgiving!"

May the Hammer eternally bleed!
M. Hyde

[This message has been edited by mutleyhyde (edited 12-31-2000).]

12-31-2000, 08:59 AM

He said he would like to see an older movie. He wanted to see faces of death but I don't have that dvd.

DVD Connoisseur · 12-31-2000, 12:49 PM

Faces of Death! I would have thought that would turn anyone off the horror genre for good. (Apart from that spine chilling, beyond the grave bit at the end. That gave me the collywobbles for weeks as a youngster!) A Nightmare On Elm Street might be a suitable older movie. It's, in my opinion, a mainstream "modern" '80s horror movie.

12-31-2000, 07:00 PM

Hmmm...I'm not a good one to ask since I don't think I could resist pulling out the big guns with Beyond, Dead Alive, Cannibal Holocaust, and so on. I would be sure to drown the poor guy in gore

Anyway, Jaws might be a good one to start with (followed by Pirahna). Then try Texas Chainsaw Massacre - that's a classic that everyone needs to see. Maybe then try Army of Darkness to see how he goes for gore and humor and then adjust from there.

------------------
"You know the rules, when we work undercover we have to remain faceless."
"Oh, I get it, just in case we kill lots of innocent people."
Frank and Ozzy, Bad Taste

Mark Relford · 12-31-2000, 07:06 PM

Good suggestions, guys. Those flicks should make a horror fan out of him. TCM, The Shining, Phantasm, Evil Dead, Hellraiser, and Fright Night are recommended.

On another note, I tried to get my nephew into the 70's-80's classics of the genre.
Exposed him to Evil Dead, Phantasm, An American Werewolf in London, TCM, The Exorcist, Dawn of the Dead, etc. They were either too boring or something to make fun of. (sigh) I should teach the brat some respect for the classics!

------------------
"Have you ever had an Egyptian feast?"

"They're back from the grave and ready to party!"

[This message has been edited by Mark Relford (edited 12-31-2000).]

12-31-2000, 07:35 PM

Gimme me a break FACES OF DEATH.That's not horror at all and I hate when fans only watch films from the 90's(which by the way is one of the worst in horror history).If I had to give someone 10 films to open their mind about the genre here they are

HALLOWEEN
THE EXORCIST
JAWS
POLTERGEIST
TCM
THE HILLS HAVE EYES
DAWN OF THE DEAD
A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET
FRIDAY THE 13TH
FRIGHT NIGHT

If these choices don't due then they don't know shit about horror.

mutleyhyde · 01-01-2001, 05:10 AM

Hmmm... I'd say, if he hasn't already seen them, the American modern classics; Amityville Horror, Rosemary's Baby, and although I don't see them on your list, The Omen and The Exorcist are really the big guns. Or, if those are too high-brow or boggy for ya, and you think he'd be more into gore, then I'd say alternating doses of the zombie flicks and slashers.

------------------
"When I go to confession, I don't offer God small sins - petty squables, jealousies - I offer him sins worth forgiving!"

May the Hammer eternally bleed!
M. Hyde

01-01-2001, 05:20 AM

Hey betterdan! Where in VA do you live? I live here, too!
Carey

01-01-2001, 06:28 AM

SantaSangre I am in Portsmouth. I think I'll let him borrow Halloween and Evil Dead first. If he thinks those are no good then he can forget it. Also if my discs come back with so much as a fingerprint he's gonna see more blood than in dead alive!

joltaddict · 01-01-2001, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by mutleyhyde:
By the way, there was this other chick at my last job that was totally into all of it; old, new - the gorier the better. I'm not shitting you, she dug New York Ripper!?! She was cool, but married. Damn!

Mutley, I like you and all but quit hitting on my wife

Give him The Shining. If he doesn't like it he is a lost cause, move on. You could give him TCM, but you have to make him promise NOT to give up during the establishing sequences. Some are put off by the low budget 70's flicks so you gotta kinda force feed them it.

I liked Stir of Echoes, I feel it was underrated. He would definitely like it but it would not make him more receptive to other non-hollywood type pics.

DVD Connoisseur · 01-01-2001, 01:51 PM

joltaddict, The Shining is (IMHO) a love it or hate it movie. For me, it was a great disappointment. I love King, I like Kubrick, but the film was too long and disjointed for me. (And it strayed too far from its source material.) I wouldn't recommend it to a newcomer as there may not be enough going on to hold the viewer's attention. Just my opinion - I know some people love this film. (P.S. I am not a lost cause! I thought Nicholson was excellent but the film just didn't gel for me.)

01-01-2001, 08:00 PM

Just as a guess, I would suggest Halloween is a good starting point - it's not too slow, not too gross, scary, and the kind of film you can compare others to as a base. (For instance, Evil Dead, you say, less plot, more gore, goofier, just as creepy; for F13 you say less intelligence, more mystery, etc. or what-have-you.)

I think Halloween sort of transcends subgenres as a horror film, and that would make it a good starting point - I'd recommend Jaws for the scares, but you can't bridge that into a slasher too well, I don't think.

If he liked Sixth Sense/Stir of Echoes and that kind of psychological horror, maybe try some stuff along those lines, like Exorcist or Omen if he's got a little religion. Or the first NOES if he doesn't.

Get him into the more "out-there" subgenres later, like Euro and cannibal stuff, the stuff that isn't for everyone - once you're sure he's hooked (er, Hellraiser joke unintended) and can take a few he doesn't like and not go, "screw this horror crap."

joltaddict · 01-01-2001, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by DVD Connoisseur:
I like Kubrick, but the film was too long and disjointed for me.

I meant that if he couldn't take to Kubrick, Argento or Bava were gonna be impossible to sell him on, and forget about Fulchi.

I feel that if he enjoyed Stigmata, as he said, you should ease him into different horror naratives, Kubrick IMO, is a good way to slowly pull him out of the way hollywood type movies lead the viewer, and into a little more artistically expessed (thematic) horror.

Your dislike of The Shining is perfectly valid, I wasn't critizing anyone who has problems with this film. I just feel the presentation is a good mid-point between Stigmata/Sixth Sense type horror and the directors who require a little more effort on the viewer part, like the Euro-horror masters.

------------------
Further Proof of my Obsesive-Compusive Disorder

DVD Connoisseur · 01-01-2001, 09:39 PM

joltaddict, I see where you're coming from, now. I guess "The Shining" is a good "transitional" movie, in that it's "arty" but is still firmly footed in the American horror genre. The next step after this, I guess, would perhaps be an Italian movie. I keep going back to Deep Red because it's like a Hitchcock movie in many respects. I admit, though, that the US based movies are probably a safer area for this viewer, until he determines his likes / dislikes.

12-31-2000, 07:05 AM	#1
betterdan Guest Posts: n/a	Trying to convert someone to a horror lover I was talking to a guy at work who is 22. He has just gotten a dvd player for Christmas and was wanting to borrow one of my dvds to watch as he only has Gladiator. I told him I mostly had horror out of my 130 dvds. I showed him my list of dvds and he said he couldn't believe I didn't have "really" scary movies like Stigmata. He then asked what Salem's Lot,Carrie, and Army of Darkness were among others! He does not know what a damn good horror movie is and I want to convert him to a REAL horror fan. Below is listed all my horror dvds which one should I let him borrow? I don't want to turn him off but onto horror so that I can finally have a friend who has the same taste in movies as me. Everyone here in Virginia I know thinks I am weird when I mention one of my movies because they have never heard of most of them... AMITYVILLE HORROR, THE ARMY OF DARKNESS BAY OF BLOOD BEYOND, THE (LIMITED EDITION TIN) BLACK CHRISTSMAS BOOGEY MAN / DEVONSVILLE TERROR CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST CANNIBAL MAN CANNIBAL FEROX CARNIVAL OF SOULS / HORROR HOTEL CARRIE CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD DAY OF THE DEAD DEAD ALIVE DEEP BLUE SEA DEEP RED DON’T LOOK IN THE BASEMENT DON'T GO IN THE HOUSE END OF DAYS EVIL DEAD EVIL DEAD 2 DEAD BY DAWN EXORCIST, THE FRIDAY THE 13TH FRIDAY THE 13TH PART 2 FRIGHT NIGHT FUNHOUSE, THE GARGOYLES HALLOWEEN (RESTORED EDITION) HALLOWEEN 2 HALLOWEEN 3 HELLBOUND HELLRAISER 2 HELLRAISER INFERNO JAWS LET SLEEPING CORPSES LIE MANIAC NEW YORK RIPPER NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET COLLECTION NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 2 FREDDY’S REVENGE NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3 DREAM WARRIORS NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4 THE DREAM MASTER NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 5 THE DREAM CHILD FREDDY’S DEAD THE FINAL NIGHTMARE WES CRAVEN’S NEW NIGHTMARE THE NIGHTMARE SERIES DVD ENCYCLOPEDIA PHANTASM PHENOMENA PIECES PIRANHA PROM NIGHT ROSEMARY’S BABY SALEM’S LOT SCREAM (DELUXE COLLECTORS EDITION) SENTINEL, THE SEVEN SHINING, THE SIXTH SENSE SLEEPY HOLLOW SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE STIR OF ECHOES TENEBRE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE, THE TOURIST TRAP TRILOGY OF TERROR TWITCH OF THE DEATH NERVE (ON PREORDER) ZOMBIE [This message has been edited by betterdan (edited 12-31-2000).]

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12-31-2000, 07:18 AM	#2
mutleyhyde Fuck it. Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: Dallas Posts: 4,904	This guy sounds like a "modernite". I can't stand it when people go "oh, that's old." I'm serious, I fucking hate that. There was this chick at my last job that was into all the new horror stuff (Stir of Echoes, Stigmata, etc...) but when it came to the classics, she just "didn't do" black & white or anything before the 90's for that matter. I'd say find out if your friend is a modernite or not, then that may narrow your choice down a bit. If he is, let him borrow a few newer titles, then try opening his eyes to the classics (after you've gained his cinematic trust). By the way, there was this other chick at my last job that was totally into all of it; old, new - the gorier the better. I'm not shitting you, she dug New York Ripper!?! She was cool, but married. Damn! ------------------ "When I go to confession, I don't offer God small sins - petty squables, jealousies - I offer him sins worth forgiving!" May the Hammer eternally bleed! M. Hyde [This message has been edited by mutleyhyde (edited 12-31-2000).]

12-31-2000, 08:59 AM	#3
betterdan Guest Posts: n/a	He said he would like to see an older movie. He wanted to see faces of death but I don't have that dvd.

12-31-2000, 12:49 PM	#4
DVD Connoisseur Moderator Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: The UK - Home of Censorship Posts: 2,309	Faces of Death! I would have thought that would turn anyone off the horror genre for good. (Apart from that spine chilling, beyond the grave bit at the end. That gave me the collywobbles for weeks as a youngster!) A Nightmare On Elm Street might be a suitable older movie. It's, in my opinion, a mainstream "modern" '80s horror movie.

12-31-2000, 07:00 PM	#5
fishhead Guest Posts: n/a	Hmmm...I'm not a good one to ask since I don't think I could resist pulling out the big guns with Beyond, Dead Alive, Cannibal Holocaust, and so on. I would be sure to drown the poor guy in gore Anyway, Jaws might be a good one to start with (followed by Pirahna). Then try Texas Chainsaw Massacre - that's a classic that everyone needs to see. Maybe then try Army of Darkness to see how he goes for gore and humor and then adjust from there. ------------------ "You know the rules, when we work undercover we have to remain faceless." "Oh, I get it, just in case we kill lots of innocent people." Frank and Ozzy, Bad Taste

12-31-2000, 07:06 PM	#6
Mark Relford Chairman of the Bored Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Indy Posts: 2,610	Good suggestions, guys. Those flicks should make a horror fan out of him. TCM, The Shining, Phantasm, Evil Dead, Hellraiser, and Fright Night are recommended. On another note, I tried to get my nephew into the 70's-80's classics of the genre. Exposed him to Evil Dead, Phantasm, An American Werewolf in London, TCM, The Exorcist, Dawn of the Dead, etc. They were either too boring or something to make fun of. (sigh) I should teach the brat some respect for the classics! ------------------ "Have you ever had an Egyptian feast?" "They're back from the grave and ready to party!" [This message has been edited by Mark Relford (edited 12-31-2000).]

12-31-2000, 07:35 PM	#7
JBENE Guest Posts: n/a	Gimme me a break FACES OF DEATH.That's not horror at all and I hate when fans only watch films from the 90's(which by the way is one of the worst in horror history).If I had to give someone 10 films to open their mind about the genre here they are HALLOWEEN THE EXORCIST JAWS POLTERGEIST TCM THE HILLS HAVE EYES DAWN OF THE DEAD A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET FRIDAY THE 13TH FRIGHT NIGHT If these choices don't due then they don't know shit about horror.

01-01-2001, 05:10 AM	#8
mutleyhyde Fuck it. Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: Dallas Posts: 4,904	Hmmm... I'd say, if he hasn't already seen them, the American modern classics; Amityville Horror, Rosemary's Baby, and although I don't see them on your list, The Omen and The Exorcist are really the big guns. Or, if those are too high-brow or boggy for ya, and you think he'd be more into gore, then I'd say alternating doses of the zombie flicks and slashers. ------------------ "When I go to confession, I don't offer God small sins - petty squables, jealousies - I offer him sins worth forgiving!" May the Hammer eternally bleed! M. Hyde

01-01-2001, 05:20 AM	#9
SantaSangre Guest Posts: n/a	Hey betterdan! Where in VA do you live? I live here, too! Carey

01-01-2001, 06:28 AM	#10
betterdan Guest Posts: n/a	SantaSangre I am in Portsmouth. I think I'll let him borrow Halloween and Evil Dead first. If he thinks those are no good then he can forget it. Also if my discs come back with so much as a fingerprint he's gonna see more blood than in dead alive!

01-01-2001, 01:51 PM	#12
DVD Connoisseur Moderator Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: The UK - Home of Censorship Posts: 2,309	joltaddict, The Shining is (IMHO) a love it or hate it movie. For me, it was a great disappointment. I love King, I like Kubrick, but the film was too long and disjointed for me. (And it strayed too far from its source material.) I wouldn't recommend it to a newcomer as there may not be enough going on to hold the viewer's attention. Just my opinion - I know some people love this film. (P.S. I am not a lost cause! I thought Nicholson was excellent but the film just didn't gel for me.)

01-01-2001, 08:00 PM	#13
AceRimRat Guest Posts: n/a	Just as a guess, I would suggest Halloween is a good starting point - it's not too slow, not too gross, scary, and the kind of film you can compare others to as a base. (For instance, Evil Dead, you say, less plot, more gore, goofier, just as creepy; for F13 you say less intelligence, more mystery, etc. or what-have-you.) I think Halloween sort of transcends subgenres as a horror film, and that would make it a good starting point - I'd recommend Jaws for the scares, but you can't bridge that into a slasher too well, I don't think. If he liked Sixth Sense/Stir of Echoes and that kind of psychological horror, maybe try some stuff along those lines, like Exorcist or Omen if he's got a little religion. Or the first NOES if he doesn't. Get him into the more "out-there" subgenres later, like Euro and cannibal stuff, the stuff that isn't for everyone - once you're sure he's hooked (er, Hellraiser joke unintended) and can take a few he doesn't like and not go, "screw this horror crap."

01-01-2001, 09:39 PM	#15
DVD Connoisseur Moderator Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: The UK - Home of Censorship Posts: 2,309	joltaddict, I see where you're coming from, now. I guess "The Shining" is a good "transitional" movie, in that it's "arty" but is still firmly footed in the American horror genre. The next step after this, I guess, would perhaps be an Italian movie. I keep going back to Deep Red because it's like a Hitchcock movie in many respects. I admit, though, that the US based movies are probably a safer area for this viewer, until he determines his likes / dislikes.