So here it is our Top 10 Horror Films of 2007, plus a few other favorites,
highlights and quotes from our frightfull year. Love it or hate I could care
less; I need a friggen drink! That is our other motto by the way. Enjoy!
#1.
28
Weeks Later / 28 Days Later Who would of thunk when Fox Atomic
released 28 Weeks Later that it would be one of the top horror
movies of 2007? When I started getting feedback for our top ten list, even
before I decided to eliminate Hostel 2 and Halloween, I was
surprised that 28 Weeks was heavily in contention for the number
one spot. When I originally saw the poster and trailer for this film, I
thought it would be a steaming pile of shit, but I was wrong. It was
pretty damn great. I figured as the year went on it would slowly get
pushed to the back of our memories, as such heavy weights as Hostel, I
Am Legend, the much hyped Hatchet and so on got released, but
it wouldn’t go away. 28 Weeks Later is one of those rare sequels
that hold up to the original, and make it better as a whole. It continues
the story upping the ante, but can stand alone as its own film. It also
featured two of the fucking freakiest looking little girls I have ever
seen and they were the good guys! So I give you our Number One horror
movie of 2007- the only film that got an overwhelming amount of votes from
our staff and readers! - WIL Keiper
#2.
The
MistThe greatest horror of 2007 may be the American
public’s indifference to Frank Darabont’s glorious and bold adaptation
of Stephen King’s The Mist.
“Fear changes everything.”
One of the best and most honest taglines to any film I have seen in
many years. Fear does indeed change everything. First rule of Stephen King
books being turned in films– only Frank Darabont should be allowed to
make these films. He has an enormous amount of respect for the source
material. Yes, the ending of the film is different from the ending of the
novella. The ending is one that will divide audiences for many years. For
me, it is quite simply the boldest ending I have seen of a major American
film in a long time. A freak storm unleashes an army of horrific creatures
on a small town in Maine. A small group of citizens is holed up in a
supermarket and the fight for survival begins. The beauty of Darabont’s
film is that it works well as a monster movie and social commentary. It is
one of the best cinematic allegories of the post-9/11 era. The film does
what the so-called political films of this year failed to do, it makes you
think. The human monsters inside the market are just as frightening as
those mutations lurking in the mist. Thomas Jane’s David Drayton says it
best: “Sure, as long as the machines are working and you can dial
911. But you take those things away, you throw people in the dark, you
scare the shit out of them - no more rules.” The film is a stunning
homage to the great monster movies of the 1950’s, the original Twilight
Zone series and the spirit of Richard Matheson’s timeless stories. The
Mist stays with you long after the lights come up. – Jerry Dennis
remake of Fritz Lang's 1932 classic
14. 8.1 Frankenstein
- The Legacy Collection...(1931) 13,718
15. 8.1 The Thing (1982) 41,794 The
Carpenter Collection
16. 8.1 King
Kong (1933) 23,950 "Now you see it. You're amazed. You can't
believe it. Your eyes open wider. It's horrible, but you can't look away.
There's no chance for you. No escape. You're helpless, helpless. There's just
one chance, if you can scream. Throw your arms across your eyes and scream,
scream for your life!"
17. 8.0 Jungfrukällan(1960) 3,594 Max
von Sydow, Birgitta Valberg
18. 8.0 Dead
of Night(1945) 1,798
19. 8.0 Rosemary's
Baby (1968) 27,372
20. 8.0 The
Exorcist (1973) 63,576
21. 8.0 The
Innocents(1961) 3,660 one of the most effective ghost stories
ever filmed
22. 8.0 Onibaba(1964) 2,108
23. 8.0 Invasion
of the Body Snatchers (1956) 9,289
24. 8.0 Dead
Man's Shoes (2004) 7,666
25. 8.0 Kwaidan(1964) 2,165
26. 8.0 Repulsion(1965) 7,009
27. 8.0 Shaun
of the Dead (2004) 69,808
28. 7.9 The
Invisible Man (1933) 4,915
29. 7.9 Night
of the Living Dead(1968) 24,200
30. 7.9 Dawn
of the Dead (1978) 26,526
31. 7.9 The Unknown (1927) 1,417
32. 7.9 Yeux sans visage, Les (1960) 2,304
33. 7.9 Halloween (1978) 38,547
34. 7.8 The Holy Mountain (1973) 2,526
35. 7.8 The Birds (1963) 34,680
36. 7.8 Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler - Ein Bild der Zeit (1922) 1,000
37. 7.8 Peeping Tom (1960) 5,289
38. 7.8 The Haunting (1963/I) 7,720
39. 7.8 Evil Dead II (1987) 28,372
40. 7.8 Survive Style 5+ (2004) 1,993
41. 7.8 Planet Terror (2007) 19,428
42. 7.8 Vargtimmen (1968) 2,119
43. 7.8 The Mist (2007) 8,361
44. 7.8 The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939) 2,303
45. 7.8 Abre los ojos (1997) 14,691
46. 7.8 The Phantom of the Opera (1925) 3,552
47. 7.8 Profondo rosso (1975) 4,939
48. 7.7 Freaks (1932) 8,361
49. 7.7 Dracula (1958) 3,376
50. 7.7 Häxan (1922) 1,237
#3.
Grindhouse
Presents, Death Proof - What does one get when you take two of the best
movies of the year filled with over the top gore, car chases, the greatest
character actors working today, explosions, trailers for movies you could only
dream of, a ton of gorgeous women, two of the best soundtracks of the year and
toss in the hottest amputee ever seen on screen. You end up with Grindhouse,
one of the best films to hit theaters in years. Too bad hardly any of you
fuckers went to see it. Sure, you’ll line up for shit fests like Transformers
and Rob Zombie’s craptracular <>Halloween abortion, but a fun and truly
original film like Grindhouse gets released to a mostly uninterested and
perhaps undeserving audience. – Tyler Shainline - Read the rest of Grindhouse
rant on this site !
#4.
Wrong
Turn 2 - Dead EndThis movie is Damned Retarded! I loved every
gory minute of it! This is definitely one of my favorite of the recently
released horror flicks. It is too ridiculous to be missed, and Rollins fuckin’
rules in this flick! So be sure to watch this flick and have a TV PARTY
TONIGHT!!! - From Larry on our Message Board
I decided to give Wrong Turn 2: Dead End the nod for three reasons –
the plentiful gore, Henry Rollins is in it, and Crystal Lowe gets topless.
It’s worth a look for those reasons alone. - Brain Hammer (who rated this
number #10 on his picks)
#5.
Severance
Wow. Four months away and this site still smells like ass. Anyway, Severance
is not only one of the best horror films of the year, but the best horror-comedy
so far this decade. Usually when you get a movie like this you can either be
funny or gory, but Severance manages to give is both in huge peals, and
with a deft mastery in tone by director Christopher Smith to avoid the bipolar
shifts that a lesser director would have fell prey to. In fact, that this film
is so elusive and hard to pin down may be what’s so fascinating about it. - Dr.
Royce Clemens (Royce now writes for Fatally-yours.com
& Geeksofdoom.com)
#6.
Bug
As a more unconventional horror movie, this seems much more like a drama on the
surface. For most of the film it follows the pattern of one. Agnes (Judd) and
Peter (Shannon) are shown simply talking, mostly about Agnes and her situation
in life losing her son 10 years ago and fearing her abusive husband fresh out of
jail. The more time they spend together the more the horror sets in. Whether
this was intentional or not Peter is the one spreading this and infecting Agnes.
Peter was basically a lab rat to the government when he was serving time and
went AWOL. You want to believe him, but it is clear that he has a poisonous mind
that is tainting Agnes vision. As time goes on they become more and more
paranoid leading to serious circumstances that put them in massive danger. While
the most obvious terror is Peter and his paranoia, a more direct one is the
government. Peter’s condition and what he is capable is only the way it is
because of the tests that they did. What makes this so scary is that this type
of a thing could really be happening today. There is a war going on right now,
certainly questionably unmoral activities could be occurring to Americans who
put their lives on the line for their country. Peter and Agnes are incredibly
likeable though. You know not to trust them, but you are almost tempted too;
making you question everything that you see. That was the point too, to question
everything rather it’s the people you trust or what is going on behind closed
doors. – Kelsey Zukowski
#7.
The
Host Bong Joon-ho made The Host for me. He might have thought he was
making it for himself, but let us be very clear he made the finest monster film
in quite some time. Not since the original Gojira and other early Toho Kaiju
films has there been such a reason to celebrate. The Host deserves to be
one of the top ten films of the years simply because it transcends the genre. It
is plethora of genres. The Host is a monster movie and a political satire
filled with sheer lunacy and the ultimate in dysfunctional family dynamics.
Think Little Miss Sunshine, Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster, Jaws, Alien,
Pan’s Labyrinth and either version of The Blob all mixed together.
It pushes the boundaries to a point where you know that you are witnessing the
creation of something new and wonderful. Hyun-seo (Ko A-sung) is one of the
bravest movie heroines. She is captured by the hideous, mutated tadpole living
in Seoul’s Han River. Only Ivana Baquero’s Ofelia in Pan’s Labyrinth comes
close to her heroism. It is up to the Park family to put aside past differences
to find and rescue Hyun-seo because they will not get any help from the
government, the military or the police. The Park’s family descent into hell
and madness will stay with you for many years to come. You will come for the
monster movie aspect, but you will take away a wonderful tale about family
coming together for the common good and the environmental dangers facing our
planet. The Host is as good as they come. Please, no American remakes of
this film. – Jerry Dennis
#8.
30
Days of Night 2007 was the year of the comic book movie with 300,
Ghost Rider, and Fantastic Four, so it’s no surprise that Hollywood
would take on popular horror comic writer, Steve Niles, and his baby, 30 Days
of Night. Director David Slade, hot off his very little but very memorable
indy film, Hard Candy, doesn’t go balls out like most directors granted
with a larger budget, and keeps it focused and in tune for the most part with
Niles graphic novel. I dug the fresh, original nature of the vampires, acting
more like rabid animals rather than metrosexual douchebags, and the film
captures a cold environment that is all but hopeless when the lights go out.
It’s a great vampire flick and the gory moments alone (cool beheadings) make
it worthy to be in the Top 10 horror flicks of 2007. – Mike Fish
#9.Behind
the Mask - The Rise of Leslie VernonThis is definitely notable to
horror fans. Leslie Vernon (Baesel) is possibly the biggest horror fan of all.
He takes admiration of some of the biggest icons like Freddy Krueger, Jason
Voorheez, and Michael Myers, and learns how to be a real life killer himself. It
pays homage to these characters and the movies that they brought us. Being a
mockumentary, it pokes fun at all of the clichés you have seen in countless
films in the past. It is something so well known to Leslie that him and his
friend know a separate terminology for every person, situation, and action
involved. The fact that this whole thing is being reported to a news anchor over
a long period of time questions the media’s role in violence. How far is too
far to go for a story? Leslie Vernon gives all the horrifying information you
could think of. Yet nothing is done to stop him. We have seen many movie killers
in numerous situations over many years. We are able to see even more of Leslie
though. He takes us through the whole process of killing. His way of thinking
and reactions are very comical. Leslie gets stoked when planning a murder, yet
in a chipper sort of way that you wouldn’t associate with a serial killer. In
a twisted sense this puts him on the same level as us. We can relate to him on
his love for the horror genre. The way he talks about it is in a completely
normal tone. He seems like an every day guy who happens to have a passion for
murder. – Kelsey Zukowski
#10.The
Girl Next Door I suppose the Girl Next Door made the Top
Ten list for a number of reasons. The most obvious being that the film is based
on a novel by one of the greatest true crime/ horror writers today- Jack
Ketchum. Even horror great Stephen King called it “the first authentically
shocking American film I’ve seen since Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer.”
Sure, the film doesn’t count as horror per se (although the interesting
marketing tactics of Starz Home Ent. would say otherwise), but this is by far
one of the most horrific films made this year. It is loosely related to the true
crime story of a girl that was tortured…by other children…that were supposed
to be her neighborhood friends…while being supervised by a cruel adult. This
film makes you realize that the boogeyman lives right next door and apparently
comes in the form of innocent children. It teaches you that no human can be
trusted. The next time you see children playing tag in a yard, you may question
who is really “it”. Yeah, zombies are scary, but they are not real. Okay,
Michael Myers returning for the umpteenth time gets your man panties in a bunch,
but we’ve seen it all before. Then there are the vampires, mists, cannibals,
serial killers, etc. that made the list. But Girl is the one that will
actually get under your skin. This is the film that has made grown men cry. Now
THAT is reason enough for it to make any “Best of” 2007 list. – Molly
Celaschi
This was a dvd release that hardcore horror fans had been anticipating for
years. It’s well known that The Burning is one of the all time great
slasher flicks. Sadly, for far too long a decent looking, uncut print of The
Burning was something of a “holy grail” for slasher completists. The
original “R” rated vhs releases, and most of the region 2 dvd releases were
all heavily edited and therefore worthless. Several years ago I paid $25 for a
murky looking bootleg vhs copy of the uncut Japanese print – and thought it
was quite a bargain. Looking back I could kick myself for such a foolish
purchase, especially when I watch the beautiful looking remastered dvd print of The
Burning that MGM officially released in September of 2007.
After several years of having this one tucked up their ass, MGM went the
extra mile with this dvd release. First of all, they were wise enough to present
the UNCUT version of The Burning with all of the juicy splatter intact.
The dvd features beautiful picture quality and is much clearer looking than any
previous release. Best of all, we get several brand new bonus features –
including a 17 minute Tom Savini special effects featurette entitled Blood
N’ Fire, a commentary track with director Tony Maylam, a photo gallery,
and the theatrical trailer.
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