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Certificate: 
Director: Hideo Nakata
Release Date: 6 June 2003
Main Cast:
Hitomi Kuroki … Yoshimi Matsubara
Rio Kanno … Ikuko Matsubara
Another superb horror from the director of Ringu. Whilst not as scary as Ringu, Dark Water is a suspense filled tale that manages to creep you out more and more as the film goes on. It starts with a downbeat scene of torrential rain and a young girl waiting in school for her mother after all the other children have been picked up. The film then cuts to a custody mediation between a divorced couple. The love the mother has for her child is clear, but money is short and they rent a room in an old and rather run down apartment block. A rather eerily deserted one at that. It’s here that you get a real sense of foreboding that makes you shuffle in your seat.
The director paces the film perfectly, building the tension slowly. And even though you know where the film is headed it’s still thoroughly enjoyable. At no point do you groan and think how cheesy it is, as is so often the case in Western horrors. The acting is also superb. Both Hitomi Kuroki and Rio Kanno give stunning performances throughout.
Dark Water is an engrossing film that had me totally absorbed, and I thoroughly recommend it.
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Certificate: 
Director: Bob Clark
Release Date: 20 December 1974
Tagline: If this movie doesn’t make your skin crawl… It’s on too tight!
Main Cast:
Olivia Hussey … Jessica Bradford
Keir Dullea … Peter Smythe
Margot Kidder … Barbie Coard
If you’re a horror fan like myself, then you are probably very frustrated at the lack of good horror films made over the last 20 years or so. If, however, you think that modern horror flicks like Wrong Turn, or the remake of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre to name but two are good, then you need to get out more.
Now, I’m not easily scared or made to feel uneasy, so when I find a film that does either or both (I’m rarely scared!), then it’s quite an achievement!
Black Christmas (and I don’t mean the 2006 remake!) is regarded by many as the first stalk-and-slash horror film. It’s genuinely creepy and unsettling and the level of tension grows at a steady pace until you find yourself beginning to sweat. The obscene phone calls received by the girls are particularly nasty. It’s not your average heavy breather on the line either. It’s some deeply disturbed individual who spews all sorts of filth, and it even sounds like he has multiple personalities. Whatever the case, he’s obviously a very disturbed individual.
It is also devoid of all the post 1980 stereotypes such as stupid characters and endless gore. There is one moment of stupidity from one of the characters (near the end), but I understand that it has to be there for the sake of the film. And it has the most unusual ending. I’m not going to give anything away as I’d really like it if you watched the film yourself, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a horror film end in this way before.
There are times when I like a bit of gore, but all the best horror films have a less is more approach. They rely on suspense, tension and the terror of the unknown. If you ask any serious horror fan to name some of the best films, they will probably include Halloween, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Alien, Psycho and Ringu amongst them. I’d put Black Christmas up there too.
We’re always safe as long as we’re behind a locked door… Right?
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Director: David Slade
Release Date: 1 November 2007
Main Cast:
Josh Hartnett … Sheriff Eben Oleson
Melissa George … Stella Oleson
Danny Huston … Marlow
I love vampires, and am frustrated at the fact that ‘Hollywood’ doesn’t seem to be able to make the most of them. So many vampire films portray them either as little more than a glamorous pain in the neck (heh!), or as pretentious bores. I went to see this with a low expectation, so that anything better than ‘average’ would be a pleasant surprise. And I was pleasantly surprised! At last, a film that depicts vampires as savage, soulless beings with enough humanity to serve as a reminder that these creatures were once like you and I.
I really liked the plot; an Alaskan town is plunged into darkness for a month, and is attacked by a bloodthirsty gang of vampires, resulting in an unrelenting and agonising fight for survival by the residents.
It is generally well acted, though Josh Hartnett delivers another bland and expressionless performance. I was also a bit disappointed by the timeline holes; there were times where it seemed that we had suddenly jumped a week or two, and I found myself being unaware of how many days had passed.
30 Days of Night is an intensely violent vampire flick that, thankfully, stays well away from cheesy stereotypes and pretentiousness.
One last thing… Does anyone else think that Marlow looks like a cross between Neil Tennant and Norman Cook?!
Rating: 
Certificate:
Director: Kim Je-Woon
Release Date: 13 August 2004
Main Cast:
Yeom Jeong-a … Eun-joo (Stepmother)
Im Soo-jung … Su-mi
Moon Geun-young … Su-yeong
Kim Kab-su … Bae Moo-hyeon (Father)
This is one of my all time favourite films. Immediately after watching it for the first time, I watched all the special features on the DVD (which is unheard of for me!). I then rewatched the film the next day.
The acting is superb, and the film is gripping from start to finish.
I don’t want to reveal anything about the film here; to do so would be a mistake. I will say, however, that it is a finely crafted film, revealing its secrets slowly.
It’s well worth seeking out sites that offer theories and possible explanations for events in the film, and the link below offers some very credible ones. A word of warning though; do not view this site before watching the film!
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0365376/board/thread/69288079
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