Editorials
Six Horror Families to Visit Ahead of ‘The Vourdalak’
The director of The Vourdalak, Adrien Beau recommends six horror favorites.
Family is the ultimate encapsulation of society. It offers us a taste of the whole world, but at a molecular level – and is very convenient if you want to destroy the world via your storytelling. The Greeks knew it with their tragedies, and we’re still using it to this day.
The tale of The Vourdalak is about how a monster can destroy their relatives from within, feeding one by one on those they love the most. In our case it’s a fatherly, patriarchal figure who has transformed into something inhuman… but the horrible threat can come from elsewhere in the family unit.
Here, I share my five favorite horror films about that very topic…
HORROR FEATURING… THE FATHER AND MOTHER
Stanley Kubrick‘s The Shining, of course, is my definitive pick when it comes to fear of one’s father. Even if there’s nothing left to say about this masterpiece, it still deserves to be brought up. We are all somehow both Danny and Jack Torrance, even as our protagonist completely loses his mind.
Similarly, there is so much to love about Peter Jackson‘s iconic family-centric gorefest Braindead / Dead Alive, wherein an overbearing mother, killed via a poisonous animal bite, returns from the dead, transforms into a giant rat creature, and begs her doting son to “come to mommy.”
In this sneakily-smart film, the Oedipal dynamic between mother and son has never been wilder — or gorier.
HORROR FEATURING… THE SISTER
I’m absolutely fascinated by the character of Baby Jane Hudson, played by the great Bette Davis, in Robert Aldrich‘s Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. From her performance and detailed costuming to the song she repeatedly sings (“I’ve written a letter to daddy!”), this middle-aged woman dressed like a little girl, living almost solely in her memories while ghoulishly torturing her sibling, is just as shocking now as she was when the film was released back in 1962
I’m so grateful she has become such an icon of cinema – and I really hope I’m going to be like her when I get older.
HORROR FEATURING… THE DAUGHTER
When discussing horror films focused on the horror of one’s daughter, there’s nothing more terrifying than William Friedkin‘s masterpiece, The Exorcist.
A Catholic nightmare for women and mothers in particular, its story wisely focuses its first act on a modern woman who works full-time as a successful actress while raising her daughter on her own. She has very little time left to spend with her daughter, even though she loves her very much. But on the rare occasion that her attention is elsewhere, conservative Christian mythology sees that her baby girl cruelly transformed into something unsettlingly evil.
HORROR FEATURING… THE BABY
Roman Polanski‘s Rosemary’s Baby has a simple, perfectly effective message: The devil is here… in your building… in your neighbors… in your husband… and in your belly.
And nothing could be scarier.
AND FINALLY, HORROR FEATURING… THE EMBRYO
Ridley Scott‘s Alien is one of my favorite films of all-time, and a very eloquent and clever pro-choice manifesto. Forget the sequels and dive into the original’s message: It’s a brilliant feminist manifesto, sensitively depicting the fear of an unwanted pregnancy. Those eggs… those creatures, growing in the bellies of their hosts… that all-encompassing ship, which everyone refers to as “Mother”… and the blood of android Ash, which could very easily be interpreted as spilled mothers’ milk.
Even in the 70s, we already knew that some of us were just better off with cats.
The Vourdalak opens this Friday, June 28th, at New York City’s IFC Center with writer/director Adrien Beau in attendance. Limited tickets for the screenings are still available HERE.
New month, new horror recommendations from Deep Cuts Rising. This installment’s five selections reflect the month of July 2024.
Regardless of how they came to be here, or what they’re about, these past movies can generally be considered overlooked, forgotten or unknown.
This month’s offerings include a snake thriller, a giallo, and more.
Death Walks on High Heels (1971)
Death Walks on High Heels (1971)
Directed by Luciano Ercoli.
For fans, July is dedicated to gialli. And one giallo that doesn’t come up too often in discussions is Death Walks on High Heels (La morte cammina con i tacchi alti in Italian). After Nieves Navarro‘s character’s father — a jewel thief — is murdered, the masked assailant comes after the daughter. The protagonist flees to England, however, her pursuer won’t stop until he gets what he seeks.
Death Walks on High Heels never quite reaches the heights of its contemporaries, yet the twisty story, small bursts of style, and a potent third act make Ercoli’s movie enjoyable.
Death Walks on High Heels is now streaming on SCREAMBOX.
Of Unknown Origin (1983)
Directed by George P. Cosmatos.
This entry works for Ratcatcher’s Day (July 22) and Paperback Book Day (July 30). Of Unknown Origin is based on the novel The Visitor by Chauncey G. Parker III, and the movie stars Peter Weller of RoboCop fame. Shannon Tweed also had her acting debut here. The story follows a father and husband (Weller) who stays behind in his family’s brownstone as his wife and son go on vacation. What should have been a productive time soon becomes an all-out battle once the main character learns he has a rat infestation and goes to great lengths to wipe out the vermin.
While Of Unknown Origin is more of a laser-focused psychological horror story than a typical creature-feature, it does contain intense man-versus-beast action. Weller’s performance can be praised as well.
Catch Of Unknown Origin on VOD sites like Prime Video and Apple, and it’s also available on Blu-ray from Shout! Factory.
Fair Game (1988)
Fair Game (1988)
Directed by Mario Orfini.
The Italian-made thriller Fair Game (also known as Mamba) is suitable for World Snake Day (July 16). This cat-and-mouse movie pits a woman (Trudie Styler) against her ex (Gregg Henry) as well as a highly venomous mamba. The main character is trapped in her apartment with the creature, who has been been made more aggressive for this special occasion.
Although this movie has pacing issues, and the high concept would better serve a shorter feature or even a segment of an anthology, it does manage to brew some suspenseful moments.
Fair Game is now streaming on Tubi.
The Paperboy (1994)
The Paperboy (1994)
Directed by Douglas Jackson.
While The Paperboy brings up Boston, this is, in fact, a Canadian production. Marc Marut plays the titular 12-year-old whose paper route includes murder. He soon target his latest victim’s daughter, who is played by Christine co-star Alexandra Paul.
The Paperboy won’t likely replace The Good Son or Orphan as everyone’s favorite “killer kid” movie, but the sinister atmosphere and (unintentional) humor help it stand out. House star William Katt also supports Paul and Marut here, with the latter’s performance being truly wild.
Looking for Canadian horror for Canada Day (July 1)? The Paperboy is now on Prime Video.
Estranged (2015)
Estranged (2015)
Directed by Adam Levins.
Estranged demonstrates how dangerous it can be to forget the past. Amy Manson‘s character is returned to her family after a bad accident while living abroad. She uses a wheelchair for the time being, and her memory is affected. As she reunites with her family though, the main character can’t help but feel like something is “off” about them…
This dark British movie can be viewed on I Forgot Day (July 2). It sports enough shocks to make it memorable. Estranged is now streaming on Tubi.
No genre is as prolific as horror, so it’s understandable that movies fall through the cracks all the time. That is where this recurring column, Deep Cuts Rising, comes in. Each installment of this series will spotlight several unsung or obscure movies from the past — some from way back when, and others from not so long ago — that could use more attention.
LEGO Turns the Boat from ‘Jaws’ into an Official Set This August
Five Independence Day Set Horror Movies to Stream This Week
The Best Horror Movies on Hulu/Disney+ to Stream Right Now (July 2024)
‘MaXXXine’ Review – Ti West’s Trilogy Closes Out With Inert Tribute to the ’80s
5 Deep Cut Horror Movies to Seek Out in July 2024
You must be logged in to post a comment.