EMN2 Programming Guide - Horror
Horror File List - Horror Interstitials/Ads File List
Movies (#-M) | Movies (N-Z) | Shows/Specials | Miscellaneous
Because this channel lineup is Mandy's baby, they'll be taking over the summaries and notes for it. Their comments will be in this color to differentiate them.
Near Dark
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1987
Synopsis: A young man from a small midwestern town hooks up with a drifter woman who turns him into a vampire and brings him into her group.
EMN Notes: I sort of stumbled on this film by accident and only afterwards realized it was from an acclaimed director and was an actually decently popular film. I just had never heard of it, but the setting and poster had me curious enough to check it out. It basically plays out a little like a biker western version of Twilight. I don't want to give much away, but I wouldn't call it super plot heavy. It strike a nice blend of action, romance, and horror.
Never Hike Alone
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2017
Synopsis: A hiker stumbles upon the remains of Camp Crystal Lake.
EMN Notes: I was feeling Voorhees deprived, and I had been sitting on watching these Friday fan movies. I meant to watch this earlier this year for Friday the 13th, but our movie night that night was already super packed for our four movie weekend. Having seen the sequel, I think I know what to expect. It's going to be a fan movie, but I appreciate them for trying. I love the Friday the 13th movies, but I'll openly admit the plots are always either almost exactly the same or stuff like 'Jason gets cryogenically frozen to used as a weapon and wakes up in space'.
Never Hike In The Snow
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2020
Synopsis: The police investigate the case of a missing hiker in Crystal Lake.
EMN Notes: This Friday the 13th fan film is a prequel to the other one on this list, Never Hike Alone. I saw this one first. For what's a free Friday the 13th movie, it definitely feels like a fan film, but it's super interesting. It basically tries to re-envision Friday the 13th as a 2010s horror film in the same way the 2009 film did with 2000s horror films. It's a Friday the 13th movie with modern class, but still some cool kills. Just due to the budget, and the run time is only a little more than 30 minutes, I can't recommend it as a jumping on point for the series, but it's fun Jason lovers, and I think if the world allows it, the director could potentially make a great feature length revival for the series.
Night of the Creeps
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1986
Synopsis: Alien slugs that kill people and control their bodies are unfrozen and let loose from a lab after twenty seven years.
EMN Notes: A lovely little cult classic starring the fabulous Tom Atkins. This one starts off matching the tone of a John Hughes film, and quickly becomes a B-movie tribute. It even pays tribute to Plan 9 from Outer Space, another alien invasion zombie film. I'd say it is one of the most overlooked horrors, only in that it deserves to be as fondly remembered as one of the 80s' best films.
Night of the Living Dead
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1968
Synopsis: A group of strangers barricade themselves in a house for survival when cannibalistic corpses begin to rise from their graves, causing an epidemic.
EMN Notes: To this day, Night of the Living Dead is the most famous zombie film ever made, and one of the greatest films in the public domain. Hands down this is one of my favorite films to watch with people who have never seen this before. It's so easy to get sucked into the characters and the story. I've never once watched it with someone who didn't come off feeling anything for the film by the ending.
Nosferatu the Vampyre
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1979
Synopsis: A man goes missing while visiting a Transylvanian count that recently relocated to the English countryside.
EMN Notes: Not to be confused with the 1922 adaptation, although the design in this one is clearly based off of that one. This is about the weirdest adaptation of Dracula I've seen. Not even so much that Werner Herzog combined elements of the film Nosferatu, but they changed a lot, even down to a kind of weird ending. It's definitely a very aesthetically gorgeous film. I can tell why critics love this film, but I would call it a love-it-or-hate-it sort of thing.
Nothing But Trouble
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1991
Synopsis: Two yuppies and their clients are arrested and taken to court in the bizarre and eerie town of Valkenvania for speeding.
EMN Notes: I went from never hearing about this movie to hearing about this movie several times in the span of a year. I initially saw it late last year on a "Worst of the Year" Siskel & Ebert episode, and this year I saw an interesting documentary on its 30 year anniversary, as well as people talk after the death of Shock G, who was in the film as a part of Digital Underground. I figure what the hell.
Oculus
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2013
Synopsis: After reuniting, two siblings look to smash a supernatural mirror that ruined their lives when they were young.
EMN Notes: This was the movie that changed Blumhouse Studios for me.The switching between modern day and the past keeps this movie mostly in one location and it feels wonderfully claustrophobic at points. Considering the mirror's main power is causing illusions, it seems like it would get annoying keeping track of what is real, what's fake, and what time they're in, but the movie pulls it off incredibly. It's one of the best paranormal movies we've had in years, and my personal favorite ghost movie from the creators of Paranormal Activity.
Onibaba
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1964
Synopsis: Set in fourteenth century Japan, an older woman grows jealous of the relationship her dead son's widow and former friend have.
EMN Notes: This is an art film ghost story. It's a small cast, and it uses it well to make a very macabre film that feels like it could have come out of classic Universal. Just...in Japan. The atmosphere is very beautiful, quiet, and haunting, with great dialog. It's simple, but I especially love the look the mask has on the face(s) of the people who wear it. I had never heard of the director before, but he was apparently very well loved in the world of Japanese cinema as a classic film director and writer. I wouldn't be surprised if another one of his films gets on here again one year.
ParaNorman
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2012
Synopsis: A boy who can see ghosts is passed along the task of keeping a curse in his hometown at bay.
EMN Notes: I have a real soft spot for Laika Studios. They have an all-audiences feel to them, and their claymation work manages to be technically impressive, while pulling out all the stops to make it a great film in general. They are about as good as Pixar used to be, and I wish they would make the kind of box office return that Pixar gets. This one manages a family-friendly grand epic feel, clearly based on old horror movies and comics. It's about as close as we will ever get to a Zombies Ate My Neighbors movie.
Perfect Blue
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1997
Synopsis: An idol who leaves music to be an actress begins to lose her grip on reality.
EMN Notes: Erin's all time favorite horror movie and the first one we ever watched together that neither of us had seen beforehand. I absolutely love the work of Satoshi Kon, and this is a strong contender with Tokyo Godfathers for his best. Satoshi absolutely loves cinema and animation, and it shows in every single one of his films. His films are so beautifully made, with a experimental style, and yet all of them are about humans that feel like real people and it's their constantly shifting world that makes it obvious why it's animated. Unlike other animated horror here, this one is legitimately terrifying, so be sure to watch at your own risk.
Phantasm
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1979
Synopsis: A young boy discovers that the local mortician is killing people and using alchemy to turn them into his servants.
EMN Notes: While it's not for everyone, I love the Phantasm films. It's a very dreamlike and at times nonsensical horror franchise. Even its most hardcore fans who get sucked in are confused about what's going on, but fascinated. Every time you think you know the 'why', they add another element on top of it, so the one thing you can never call it is 'boring'. A big shoutout goes out to the series' main antagonist, The Tall Man. He is one of my favorite horror villains of all time.
Phantasm II
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1988
Synopsis: Seven years after where the first film left off, Mike and Reggie go on a road trip to stop the Tall Man once and for all.
EMN Notes: Since last year, I have now seen all the Phantasm films and I honestly find them all weird, yet fascinating. This one and 4 are my favorites of the sequels, but at the risk of over-saturation, I think this one is the best outside of the original for a self-contained experience.
Phantom of the Paradise
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1974
Synopsis: While attempting to get revenge on a legendary music producer who stole his work, a singer-songwriter is hideously scarred. Now, he lives in the music producer's new concert hall, looking to seek revenge on him and idolizing an aspiring singer who plays there.
EMN Notes: I was debating if I wanted this on Rhapsody or Horror, but honestly I like this film on both. It's a very weird but cool Phantom of the Opera adaptation that's pre-Webber Phantom. Weird to think De Palma made this film only two years before Carrie.
Poltergeist
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1982
Synopsis: A family's new home is possessed by ghosts that abduct their youngest daughter.
EMN Notes: This is a good contender for the best PG horror movie. If you've skipped it, it's got the distinction of being a collaboration between Steven Spielberg and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre's Tobe Hooper in their primes. It's the first really good modern Hollywood attempt at a ghost film, with fantastic performances and a walkthrough haunted house feel, if that makes sense. I only watched it as an adult, so it's not the nostalgic horror movie for me that it was for many others, but I think it's incredible what they got away with given the rating.
Poltergeist II: The Other Side
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1986
Synopsis: The ghost of a 19th Century cult leader looks to take Carol Anne back to the spirit world.
EMN Notes: This one's not bad, but I shamelessly want to watch this film for the character it introduces, Reverend Harry Kane. Everything I've seen with him seems great, and I've only heard people say cool things about him.
Possibly In Michigan
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1983
Synopsis: In this offbeat musical, surrealist short horror film, two women are stalked by a creep.
EMN Notes: Apparently this blew up on Tiktok. That's not where I first heard of it, but I wouldn't be surprised if the article that introduced me to it had first learned of it. This was a last minute addition because I wanted more short contained horror experiences, and what I saw on crypt tv wasn't doing it for me. I'm staying as in the dark as I possibly can until I can finally watch it, but I immediately fell in love with it. Just to be sure, I showed it to Erin, and she also fell in love with it. I am praying that I will be awake to see it when it airs.
Predator
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1987
Synopsis: A platoon in the rainforest is hunted down one-by-one by an an alien menace using them for sport.
EMN Notes: This is such a genre-convention-breaking film that it makes people question whether or not it's horror. It has a bunch of brick shithouses and one-liners like an action film, but the Predator is just a slasher villain. The army soldiers are all literally nothing compared to him. That's what makes it such a fun film, and it thankfully doesn't overstay its welcome.
Prince of Darkness
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 1987
Synopsis: A group of college students find a green vial underneath the church, one that contains Satan himself in it.
EMN Notes: I love John Carpenter's work as much as the next person. Most of his 80's work that was initially reviewed poorly got re-evaluated and are now seen as cult classics. This one still struggles at finding an audience because it's a pretty slow paced film, but it has many unique ideas and a fantastic atmosphere. For that and the incredible dialog, I forgive it, although I'll be the first to admit it has its flaws. It is severely underrated, however.
Psycho
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1960
Synopsis: An embezzler looking to skip town with a sack full of money stops to stay the night at a hotel, ran by a shy young man and his controlling, misogynist, murderous mother.
EMN Notes: I get chills watching the final lines of dialog, complete with the blink-and-you'll-miss-it effect work. The way it pulls off the film's many twists and coincidences in a way that always makes sense and never feels cheap or stupid is amazing. Some of it is ingrained in pop culture by now, but just as many more fantastic scenes haven't been. It's among the best the genre has to offer, even seventy years later.
Psycho Cop Returns
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1993
Synopsis: An office bachelor's party is ruined by a wisecracking serial killer police officer.
EMN Notes: Of all the stupid slasher films the 90's has to offer, I'm almost mad this was a hidden gem. I hadn't seen the first movie, but I know it to be the most boring of Friday the 13th and Maniac Cop rip-offs, literally featuring a Satan worshipping cop who kills people at a summer camp. What I love about this one is that it takes something flawed and makes it fun, thanks to genuinely funny moments and characters and so bad it's good humor from writer Dan Povenmire (the Phineas and Ferb guy) and director Adam Rifkin (the Detroit Rock City guy). They honestly make a star out of a guy whose gimmick is making lame puns and quips. Whether you think it's so bad it's good, genuinely good, or both, I think if you like dumb slasher films, you will have a blast.
Psycho Goreman
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2020
Synopsis: Two siblings accidentally resurrect a deadly alien warrior.
EMN Notes: Ironically, we found this decided to add this while making Grindhouse. A few weeks later it hit Shudder, and reviews have been fantastic for this film since, so this is a definite.
Psycho Gothic Lolita
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 2010
Synopsis: After a group of assassins harms her family, a daughter is out for revenge.
EMN Notes: To be honest, we got this one on a recommendation from our friends and it has never played while we were awake, so I don't have much to say. The title is incredible, and I know that it's another Japanese language film. I would love to update this entry in the future. For the record, it is currently on the Grindhouse channel, so that may be sooner rather than later.
Pumpkinhead
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1988
Synopsis: A country dad summons a revenge demon to kill a group of teenagers who accidentally murder his son.
EMN Notes: I always thought it was interesting how this whole cast has a lot of grey areas to them. The one good egg of the teenagers who stays with the kid after the hit and run still basically lets him die, and the main character (the dad) still sort of summons the monster 'Pumpkinhead'. Even the monster in this is just doing what the dad wants. He's a manifestation of the father's desire for revenge. It works well to paint everyone in this whole debacle in a somewhat understandable light, even if all of them mess up tremendously.
Ready or Not
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2019
Synopsis: On her wedding night, a bride is chosen by a game box to be hunted by her new groom's family in a deadly game of hide and seek.
EMN Notes: I didn't hear of this one when it came out, but I gave it a shot due to the promising premise and the recommendation of the Dead Meat podcast. It was a totally blind experience, which is what I would recommend as the perfect experience. The premise is what sold me, but I didn't expect it to be one of my favorite movies I saw that year. It's a horror comedy, but it's horror first, comedy second, and it's a simple premise done amazingly thanks to how much of an underdog the main character is and the hilariously written (mostly) unlikable characters, outside of the main character.
Re-Animator
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1985
Synopsis: An overly attached medical student is enlisted by his classmate, an eccentric, callous man of science who invented a formula to bring living things back to life.
EMN Notes: This is one of my all time favorite horror movies. Herbert is probably the greatest character that exists in horror, and his dynamic with everyone, especially Dan, is hysterical. The performances in this film elevate it from a solid horror with good jokes to the perfect comedy-horror ever made in my eyes. On top of all of that, it is also just a gay romance film. There is literally nothing I don't like about this movie, honestly.
Repo! The Genetic Opera
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2008
Synopsis: A horror-musical in which a father works for a company that provides cheap organs as their man to take back the organs of those whose payments lapse. Meanwhile, his sick daughter who has never seen the outside world begins to grow rebellious.
EMN Notes: I rented this film the second I saw it at Blockbuster. I've been with this movie that long. At the time I knew a fan of the Saw films who gushed about it, and knowing this one was less about the torture aspect, I gave this one a shot, and I am so glad that I did. I still get the songs stuck in my head. Almost as good is its gritty yet vibrant aesthetic and fascinating sci-fi world. It inspires me more than I ever care to admit.
Ringu
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1998
Synopsis: A reporter looks into a mysterious video tape that kills people seven days after they watch it.
EMN Notes: I am excited. I've never watched the original Ring. I've always heard it blew the American version out of the water, a film I distinctly remember people calling the scariest movie they had ever seen at the time. I'm ready to take the plunge.
Saw
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2004
Synopsis: A doctor and a photographer work together to survive the elusive Jigsaw Killer, a mysterious murderer who creates deadly traps to test a person's will to survive.
EMN Notes: I'm happy that Erin was willing to give a chance on this one, just as I was happy to revisit it. As far as independent horror movies go, the first Saw movie is honestly incredible. I don't know if I can say it deserved a new movie every year like it was getting, but the appeal is obvious. Detective stories and horror are James Wan's bread and butter, and out of all of them, this one is one of his most inventive ideas with an incredibly memorable killer. It drops you straight in and has you piece everything together. It's also got an episodic quality, like a TV show, but I think it's the 90 minute run time that lets it use its budget to full effect, trim the fat, and focus the story on the mystery and characters. I like the franchise, I just feel what needed to be said with Saw had already been said after the Wan film and the original Boseman trilogy. This one's still good, though.
Scary Stories to Tell In The Dark
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 2019
Synopsis: A group of teenagers find a book filled with scary stories where the creatures in them come to life.
EMN Notes: I will defend Guillermo del Toro and his work with my life. I think he is an incredible filmmaker and producer. This one produced by him, however, just unfortunately doesn't have a lot to work with. Getting to see the creatures from the illustrations is great, but just like how the stories aren't actually all that scary if you read them, its visuals and setting of late 1960s America is about all it has going for it. Overall, it's a perfectly acceptable film, but not really a memorable one. Cool for a one time if you enjoyed the stories as a kid.
Scooby-Doo Frankencreepy!
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 2014
Synopsis: The gang follows Velma Dinkley to her newly inherited castle, the one where Doctor Von Dinkenstein created a monster.
EMN Notes: We were just going to have one Scooby Doo movie on here plus the original show, since Mystery and EMN has a lot of Scooby Doo already, but Erin jokingly suggested this one and I encouraged it on the grounds its an anniversary film. The editing is also weirdly Hot Fuzz-like, and it keeps it interesting. Aside from a smidge of fatphobia at one point, its a fun little Scoobert Doobert. If you've watched the franchise, you know what to expect, but this one is one of the funnier direct-to-video films.
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1998
Synopsis: Mystery Incorporated gets back together after going their separate ways, and accepts an invitation to an island where the monsters appear to be real.
EMN Notes: The first and still best direct-to-video Scooby Doo movie. The first four Scooby films were among my most coveted of VHS tapes when I was a youngun. This one is probably the best in terms of just narrative, visuals, and jokes. It's a crowd-pleaser if you want a Scoopy movie that's fairly well liked.
Scream
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1996
Synopsis: Just like the slasher films that all the teens love so much, a masked killer is on the loose and slaughtering their classmates.
EMN Notes: This film is weirdly similar to a bunch of comedy and horror film in the late 90's-early 00's, except it was made in 1996. Wes Craven really just re-invented the wheel as far as slasher films are concerned with this one. It's basically a slasher version of American Pie except replace sex with horror (okay, maybe there's still some sex). It's still pretty great. Ghostface is amazing, and the satire is a bit heavy, but nearly all the jokes land. Plus, it's fun to see all the people who went on to be huge after this film came out.
See No Evil 2
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2014
Synopsis: Jacob Goodnight rises from the dead to terrorize medical students on an undertaker's birthday party at a morgue.
EMN Notes: Another year, we will probably include the original See No Evil, but we've both seen the first one too many times to count, and one film from this series a year is enough.
Shadow In The Cloud
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2020
Synopsis: A WWII pilot traveling with top-secret documents is attacked by an evil entity aboard her ship.
EMN Notes: Erin was recommended this film, and we are gonna add it to Horror. I was initially a bit worried about the film, knowing who the original screenwriter was, but it looks like he WAS removed, and the film has gotten massive rewrites since, so knowing that I am looking forward to seeing it.
Shaun of the Dead
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2004
Synopsis: An English electronics salesman and his pals are overwhelmed when they all realize collectively there's a zombie apocalypse going on.
EMN Notes: A highly quotable and lovable little zombie film parody. I say parody, in the sense of being mostly a comedy that plays off existing tropes, while adding commentary like the zombie films of old. It's far from stuff like, say, Scary Movie. The cast of Spaced basically just decided they wanted to make a loving tribute to the Romero films, and what you get is a zombie film with sitcom elements. It's great. You can never really go wrong with Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg working together.
Slumber Party Massacre
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 1982
Synopsis: A high school senior's slumber party is disrupted by a creepy killer who uses a drill.
EMN Notes: In a way the story behind this one is more interesting than the movie itself. It was written by a feminist writer to make a parody of slasher films, which were becoming notorious for killing women and being the new male power fantasy on the block. The production company turned it serious, but trusted a female director as a compromise. I really wonder what it would be if they had stuck to the screenwriter's vision. Still, what exists of the original screenplay (mostly some of the jokes and the obvious dick metaphor with the antagonist's drill) is fun.
Slumber Party Massacre II
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1987
Synopsis: A few years after the first Slumber Party Massacre, the youngest survivor begins to hallucinate visions of a new Driller Killer in the middle of her birthday party.
EMN Notes: Imagine A Nightmare on Elm Street if there was little indicator of the real world and the dream world, Freddy Kruger was replaced by a rockabilly wielding a guitar-drill, and it is a allegory for realizing you're bisexual. It is a fucking treat. This is my absolute favorite slasher villain, both ironically and kind of unironically. He sucks so much. I wish I could show the world this movie.
Son of Frankenstein
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1939
Synopsis: Doctor Frankenstein's son looks to redeem his father's reputation, and teams up with a former assistant of his with a twisted back to revive the monster and prove his father right.
EMN Notes: The cast list for this one is unbelievable, and I've heard this one is just as loved as the Whale Frankenstein films. It's another ideal choice to help expand our lineup of older films.
Suspiria
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1977
Synopsis: After transferring to a prestigious ballet academy in Europe, the American student begins to realize it's a front for something much darker.
EMN Notes: Suspiria is peak giallo horror at its finest. It, and the film's director, Dario Argento, are the first two things to come to mind when you even hear 'Italian horror'. It's a beautiful film visually and vaguely experimental in its narrative and story structure. It's not for the faint of heart, yet its style is so breathtaking it's almost impossible to look away.
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2007
Synopsis: In this musical, a barber seeks revenge by taking up an alias and plotting to murder the judge responsible for his wife's death.
EMN Notes: Such an odd musical this is. It's very dark and stylish film adaptation of the musical, about what you would expect from Tim Burton, yet it's sort of an anti-musical. Instead of trying to do the typical choreography, you get visually interesting scenes that could very well just look like spoken word at points with the sound off. In that regard, it's a little like most animated musicals in that regard. Erin loves this film more than I do, I think, but I do think it's among Burton's best work.
Tales From The Hood
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1995
Synopsis: An unusual man gives three young drug dealers a tour of his mortuary, sharing stories about the various bodies and unusual trinkets he has around.
EMN Notes: I credit Horror Noire for introducing me to this, because I had not heard about it until then. I'd say it only rivals Creepshow in terms of horror anthology films, and that is high praise. The cast all does well, I love the performance of the mortician, Mr. Simms. There's a real good tongue-in-cheek cheesiness to the stories, similar to its namesake, Tales from the Crypt. Unlike Tales from the Crypt, however, the censors are less strict, so this one can get even more gruesome when it needs to, especially in the second story. I really love the stories and how it doesn't pull any punches. The director of this later went on to direct episodes of Chappelle's Show, and it feels like a skit from that but the jokes are replaced with fucked up horror stuff. There's a lot of heavy satire from the perspective of its majority black crew and and a spontaneous quality to everything. It's one of my greatest surprises on this channel.
The Abominable Dr. Phibes
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1971
Synopsis: A scarred organist exacts revenge on the doctors who failed to save his wife with tortures for each of them based on the Ten Plagues of Egypt.
EMN Notes: I'll admit that I didn't get the chance to watch this last year, but I added it as I know if it as a hidden gem nowadays in what was honestly a stacked decade for horror. I've heard it described as Phantom of the Opera meets Saw. I did, however, see the sequel, and I love the character of Dr. Anton Phibes. Vincent Price always brought his A-game when playing characters and elevated each of them by making them people. Even the real bastards.
The Addams Family
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1991
Synopsis: A loan shark looks to pass off her son as a lost relative to trick the full of life, yet macabre Addams family out of their massive fortune.
EMN Notes: This movie is super nostalgic to me and a fantastic representation of an equally nostalgic franchise for me, the Addams Family. The casting in particular is incredible. Raul Julia and Anjelica Huston kill it, pun intended, as Gomez and Morticia. The bar was set super high for the original 60's show, but they nail the spirit and dark humor just fine. It's a solid 90 minutes of amusing Addams shenanigans.
The Addams Family Values
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1993
Synopsis: A black widow who marries Uncle Fester looks to kill the family and take the inheritance while the kids are off to summer camp.
EMN Notes: This one is even funnier than the original movie, and that's saying something. They brought back the entire cast and gave them even more dark humor and interactions with the outside world, something the original movie didn't have enough of. It's basically a whole movie out of the best part in the original where the Addams are all split up and interacting with the outside world after they are kicked out of their house, and it becomes a quip-heavy bunch of skits with each of them. There is nothing more that you would want from an Addams Family film.
The Blair Witch Project
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1999
Synopsis: This is the last footage from a group of student filmmakers who went out to film a documentary about a local legend and went missing in the process.
EMN Notes: Found footage horror is a mixed bag for me. As much as I hate to admit it, this, maybe one or two more other films, and a few YouTube ARGs are about the only ones that I thoroughly enjoy. The fact this was an indie production and had very little to work with helps. I'm not anti-CGI but the lower the budget and more real is usually better. When done poorly, and it has things that can take you out of it like it looks too hollywood or has obvious CGI, it just becomes annoying. It's takes a lot of dedication to pull off the gimmick well, which makes this one all the more impressive. They had a strong idea and left you with more questions than answers, but in turn you feel like you're in this story by being a part of their world.
The Blob
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1958
Synopsis: When no one will believe them, a group of teenagers team up to stop a gelatinous alien creature that fell to earth and absorbs everything it touches.
EMN Notes: This film is unmistakable a part of 50's culture, with a lot of the cliches you'd see from the time, but it's nowhere near as cheesy as you would expect. That might turn some people off of it, but there's a lot of redeeming qualities to it. The effects are definitely dated, but it is charming, and it actually has a strong cast with likable leads, great dialog, and genuinely somber or shocking moments. It's very similar to an early kaiju film, honestly. That plus a teenagers save the town films like Red Dawn. The 80's version is the better horror film, but I'd give this a shot as an interesting period piece horror.
The Bride of Frankenstein
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1935
Synopsis: Doctor Frankenstein's old mentor presses him to continue his work in re-animating the dead by asking him to build a woman mate for the monster he created.
EMN Notes: A direct follow up to Frankenstein with more from the original novel and also directed by James Whale, who directed the first one, and I love his work. I know this film is considered just as good, if not better than the original, but I haven't seen it and when I tried to add it last year I couldn't find it.
The Cabin in the Woods
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2011
Synopsis: An underground government facility puppeteers five college students to use them as sacrifices.
EMN Notes: This film is best experienced with as little knowledge going into it as possible. I think even Erin will tell you that, because knowing what happens and watching it play out were different experiences, and by the end, she actually enjoyed it. It had a somewhat misleading marketing campaign, and I totally understand the disdain for that, but I really think sometimes that does work well with the experience, and this is one of those cases. I'll say it's a meta-horror-comedy, and it's far from the best in that genre on this channel, but it's got fun jokes and a likable cast that helps drive the point of the movie across.
The Conjuring 2
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2016
Synopsis: Paranormal Investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren are summoned to the English town of Enfield to help prove a possession case so the church can approve an exorcism.
EMN Notes: I'm really glad I finally went ahead and binged the first two Conjuring films earlier this year. I've watched more in the series, but none really wowed me as much as the two Wan-directed films. This one is the tightest between the two. The characters beyond the Warrens as well as the villain(s) are a lot more interesting, and it's a genuinely beautiful and hopeful film, with well-earned moments of horror. I really think you have to separate the Warrens in these films in the same way you would separate Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and The Amityville Horror from their real life inspirations. It's the mythological idea of them and these famous cases. These are fictionalized ghost stories treating the "paranormal" encounters they've faced as real. A combination of great writing, directing, and acting really bring the Warrens to life as characters, and make some of the most interesting horror protagonists ever written. Credit to James Wan, the two films compliment each other, so if you're watching them for the first time, I'd recommend watching the first one first, but this is the one I consider his masterpiece.
The Dead Don't Die
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 2019
Synopsis: Two cops do their daily grind while nature itself seems to be warning them of something ominous quickly approaching.
EMN Notes: I feel like I'm going to be unnecessarily cruel if I get too much into this film, but this one was a bit of a disappointment for me. I had actually tuned out at points, but while I haven't seen his other work, I know the director/writer makes good films, and he rounded up an impressive ensemble cast. I kind of don't know what happened here, but I wouldn't say it's irredeemable. It's got a good premise with great cinematography and costume design, but it just wasn't as fun as the premise lead me to believe. I don't even think it was horror fatigue, because I watched a Christmas zombie musical film not too long later and liked that one, in spite of its flaws. I'll get to that one when I hit EMN Christmas.
The Devil's Rejects
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2005
Synopsis: Three serial killers team up on the run from an an obsessive sheriff.
EMN Notes: Rob Zombie's a very "swing for the fences" kind of director. He doesn't always succeed, but I can't ever bring myself to hate his work because he's a genuinely cool dude and feels like a giddy horror fanboy at heart. Of all the films of his I've seen, this one is my favorite. The villains from the last film, now the stars of this film, are amazing characters and so interesting to follow. You feel guilty because you have to acknowledge the really terrible killers are actually people and have fun banter with themselves and others. Sometimes it's like a funny Discord call behind your pals, and then sometimes they do a murder prank, and it all leads into the overall themes of the story. Not to mention it has one of the greatest final sequences in all of film history.
The Exorcist
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1973
Synopsis: A young girl becomes afflicted with a strange disease that can't be placed until it becomes obvious she's possessed by a demon.
EMN Notes: Nobody ever talks about how uncomfortable this movie feels starting out. Aside from a bit at the beginning, you have to go through a lot of shots that simulate general hospital discomfort before the movie gets into the actual possession. It might be a little slow for some, but it works to really make the film relatable and scary before it even pulls out the supernatural stuff. When it does hit that tone shift however, it becomes amazing. They really went out of their way to make a horror masterpiece, the likes of which had never been seen before, and they succeeded. It makes you still feel chills nearly 50 years later.
The Final Girls
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2015
Synopsis: A student and her friends go to see a slasher film that her late mother starred in and get transported into the world of the movie.
EMN Notes: I can never listen to Bette Davis Eyes the same way ever again. Of all the meta-horror I've watched, this one I think is my favorite. I watched this for the first time on a whim around the same time I watched The Frighteners, and I remembered it fondly, but the rewatch only made it better. The jokes hit, the characters are great, and it's a loving tribute to slasher films, specifically Friday the 13th, that does something unique. Think a slasher version of Pleasantville. It also absolutely broke Erin and I at one point.
The Frighteners
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1996
Synopsis: A man who can see ghosts, but uses it for a paranormal extermination con, investigates a string of mysterious killings from a grim reaper-like figure.
EMN Notes: I wanted to watch this film since I was a teenager and learned about it by sheer coincidence. I could never find it at a rental store, but I had the opportunity in 2016, and it was enjoyable enough, but I must have watched it ten times since. It's not the best film, but I love the premise and performances a lot, especially Jeffrey Combs as Milton Dammers. It's a weird film, but it's a little cult horror that means a lot to me. Plus, I mean, how many Grim Reaper horror films are there? That's an untapped market.
The Haunting
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1963
Synopsis: A group of people are invited by a paranormal investigator to help him investigate a house that's said to be haunted.
EMN Notes: Outside of Rosemary's Baby, which isn't going to happen, this was like the big missing horror film from the 60's. I've heard great things.
The Innkeepers
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2011
Synopsis: Two innkeepers look to document the supernatural stuff that happens at the Inn they work at during its final week of operation.
EMN Notes: I was recommended this one, and I've heard it's got rave reviews. Other than that, I'm going into this one completely blind.
The Invisible Man
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1933
Synopsis: A scientist creates a formula that turns him invisible, with a side effect that makes him lose his sanity over time.
EMN Notes: I wasn't super interested in this one. I thought if anything I would see the remake for this first, which I've heard mixed but mostly positive things about. While looking for more classic films, I realized this is actually James Whale, and I love him and his other films that I've seen, so that made it an instant add.
The Invisible Man Returns
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1940
Synopsis: A man on death row for a murder he didn't commit is given the invisibility serum by the former Invisible Man's brother. With him now invisible, he has to solve the murder before the serum drives him mad.
EMN Notes: How can you listen to that premise and not be excited? This one has Vincent Price in one of his first ever horror roles, too, as the main character, who was so good they brought him back as the character for an Abbott & Costello movie. For as much as I love James Whale, this one actually excited me on the premise alone, which is rare for an older horror film.
The Last Broadcast
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1998
Synopsis: A film crew covers the case of the strange disappearance of a local low budget television show crew.
EMN Notes: Much like Ghostwatch and The Blair Witch Project. this is one that falls under found footage horror. Despite coming out a year before Blair Witch, they have completely different feels. If Blair Witch explores the fear you feel reviewing over unsettling footage that you're told beforehand is the last moments recorded before an unexplained disappearance, this is about the horror you feel watching some low budget footage of an unsettling and bizarre case you'd never heard of. It feels like a combination of a strange public access show and a true crime YouTube essay, and it completely nails the style. Once I was over the realization this wasn't really a found footage horror, and I let myself sink into it, I was genuinely surprised by it. It doesn't entirely nail everything, but on aesthetic alone, it is at least among the most interesting horror movies I've seen to try and blend fiction and reality. I'd happily show it as an oddity movie for the channel.
The Lost Boys
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1987
Synopsis: When two brothers move to a new town, one of them falls in with a gang of teen vampires.
EMN Notes: As I'm writing this, The Lost Boys was recently in a discussion of 80's films, with some viewing it more fondly than hits around the timeframe like Robocop and Predator. It really warms my heart to see people give the film the recognition it deserves. Joel Schumacher unfortunately passed away and gets a lot of hate for stuff he directed in the 90's and 00's. I'll defend him, this film and others he did with my life. It is one of my all time favorite vampire films, and one of most gorgeous films I've ever seen in terms of its cinematography. If this movie was just the church scene, I would still give it five stars. I don't know if underrated is the right word, but I'll happily recommend it to anyone looking for a classic 80's film.
The Man They Could Not Hang
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 1939
Synopsis: A doctor who created an invention to cheat death is tried and hung for the death of a test subject he could have saved if they had let him do his experiment. After using his invention to come back to life, the inventor looks to trap and kill the judge and jury responsible who declared him guilty.
EMN Notes: There's a lot that is absolutely fantastic about this film. The set up is incredible, the characters and dialog at times is great, and the moral questions are fascinating. It's unfortunate only that this one didn't really have an ending that lived up to everything. It feels like if this movie was made fifty years later they could have delivered on something truly groundbreaking. As it stands there's not enough stakes raised, it's barely over sixty minutes and it feels like it takes about thirty minutes for that set up alone. We talked about it right after seeing it and we could agree that nothing about the ending felt earned. Either because of the Hayes code, or a lack of vision on the screenwriter or director's behalf on where it should go, it just feels unfinished. Overall, this one is just missed potential to me. It's not a bad film, just a three star film that could have been a five star film.
The Mummy
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1932
Synopsis: After returning from the dead, a mummy pretends to be a modern day traveler from Egypt to blend into society and find his long lost bride.
EMN Notes: To address the elephant in the room, there's definitely some pretty unfortunate decisions they made with this one that wouldn't exactly fly today. I'm glad they learned from their mistakes when rebooting this one in the 90's. Other than those decisions, it's as well acted and hypnotic as any other Universal movie around this time, with a great story, directing, character names, and dialog. Credit where credit is due, Universal did well in their first ever classic horror film not based on a book, and this was one of the more surprising films to me that I had previously overlooked.
The Neon Demon
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2016
Synopsis: An aspiring model in Los Angeles who has beauty and youth begins to get lots of attention, fascination, and jealousy.
EMN Notes: Aesthetic film. I couldn't tell what was going on in the trailers back when this got a major release, and frankly, I couldn't care less. I've wanted to watch it anyways. Besides, it's a film from the Drive director, and Erin loves that film.
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1993
Synopsis: In this animated musical, the beloved leader in a town full of monsters dedicated to Halloween becomes weary of his position, until a wave of inspiration hits him when he learns about Christmas.
EMN Notes: I've watched this film several times ever since I was young, and I still find myself smiling, enjoying the songs, and appreciating the work that went into this one when I pay attention. Many of us had a TNBC phase, and there's probably some people who still have it or will have that phase in the future, and it's all valid. Personally, I like this film as a self contained adventure. I won't sit down and watch it often, but I'll never complain having it on.
The People Under The Stairs
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1991
Synopsis: A young boy and two robbers are trapped by a weird landlord couple looking to take care of them for trespassing into their house.
EMN Notes: In 1991, Wes Craven just made ANOTHER horror film that roasted the Reagan family after Carpenter made 'They Live', and I could not be more happy. I love this film and wanted to break it out again after seeing it talked about again on Horror Noire.
The Phantom of the Opera
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1929
Synopsis: A deformed man who hides behind a mask is willing to resort to whatever vicious means necessary to turn the woman of his dreams into a star.
EMN Notes: I have a love for the musical, but Erin is the honest to god expert when it comes to Phantom, so getting to watch the original Lon Chaney film for the first time last year was a blast. Not only does it allow us to have a silent film on, but it's high budget for the time, so it looks great, and I mean, it's Phantom. It's very admirable for a first major adaptation of the story.
The Prowler
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1981
Synopsis: A group of college students are stalked and murdered at their graduation party by a masked man in an army uniform.
EMN Notes: Admittedly, I never paid much attention to this film until I saw a poster from Angusburgers on Deviantart, and this one was one of the few villains I couldn't place. I was fascinated with the design, especially the use of a rose as a motif. Since then, I've wanted to see this slasher bad, but with no easy way to watch it, I want my experience to be on Horror this year.
The Return Of The Living Dead
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1985
Synopsis: Two workers at a medical warehouse accidentally open a container containing zombies from a covered up epidemic by the US government.
EMN Notes: This has one of the most frightening implications in all horror simply in explaining how zombies work, some of the scariest designs ever put to horror, and a jaw dropping ending. Most of the time, however, it's an Abbott and Costello bit. It's a movie where literally everyone just fucks up real bad, and those fuck ups cause a chain reaction of more fuck ups. It kills me every time, yet it is still an effective horror film. I love this film from the bottom of my heart, it is one of the best the 80's has to offer.
The Revenge of Frankenstein
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1958
Synopsis: A hunchback seeks an incognito Doctor Frankenstein's help to give himself a new body.
EMN Notes: Why this specific Hammer Frankenstein? Quite literally, because it was the only one we could find. For ages, and I mean years, I have been looking to watch these, but they are absolutely impossible to find. They seem genuinely fascinating. The twist with these Frankenstein stories is instead of the creation, the focus is almost entirely on the doctor, and they make him out to be a killer who constantly takes life in the pursuit of science. It's a different creature each time. Re-Animator has some similarities, but Herbert West is the gray area between the good Victor Frankenstein of the novel, or Henry Frankenstein of the original Frankenstein, and the complete opposite of that is Hammer Frankenstein. He is just the most immoral, monstrous bastard on the planet. It only recently got a physical release by Shout Factory, so maybe one day I will get to see the full Hammer Dracula and Frankenstein series, but for now, I'm just happy we were able to get one for the channel.
The Ritual
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2017
Synopsis: When four friends reunite after one of their friends death, they wander into the forests of norse legends, where they are stalked by an ancient evil.
EMN Notes: Our friends Kralyssa watched this one this year and said it got interesting near the end. I know the director as the V/H/S person, and I liked the sequel but not so much the original. I would love to give him another shot with this movie.
The Scooby-Doo Project
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1999
Synopsis: In this parody of a certain popular horror movie with a similar name, the Mystery Incorporated gang heads into the woods to solve a case regarding a mysterious, vague monster that none of the locals can agree on a description of.
EMN Notes: I used to watch Cartoon Network religiously as a kid, and loved Scooby-Doo, and I can honestly say that I didn't remember this. This isn't a fake write up so it aired, obviously. It was originally aired all in the form of bumpers for a Halloween marathon, but eventually it got compiled into a full episode, which has never been aired after 1999. It's honestly a miracle that it's not Lost Media, because you know there are people who would hear this and immediately think it's fake. They don't really shy away from satirizing even the most infamous and scary parts of Blair Witch is the funny part. I appreciated the weird time in the late 90s and early 00s when there was no new Scooby Doo cartoons, so we got the rights holders trying to add some edge to them. The close ties to the original really make this one weird, but a fun little breakup special for our horror channel, and it fits better here than on Mysteries.
The Seventh Curse
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1986
Synopsis: After saving a woman from being sacrificed, a cop is cursed with seven "Blood Curses" that burst through his leg periodically.
EMN Notes: The best way to sum up this film from Hong Kong is 'imagine if Indiana Jones had more moments where it got really fucked up, and those moments were turned up to eleven". The other best way to sum it up is "if James Bond has sex, he's going to explode". It may not have the normal tone of a horror, but it is one of several genres, and having now seen it, I'd happily watch it again. We included this out of a want to add a horror movie from Hong Kong, and this was an interesting one talked about on In Search of Darkness Part II. If you love Big Trouble in Little China, this has a very similar vibe to that. It's an ordinary, cunning and butt kicking guy against the forces of the supernatural with the help of his friends. Sometimes people die to those forces, or a flying alien baby kills somebody. These things happen.
The Shining
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 1980
Synopsis: A family becomes a winter caretaker of a hotel where a hostile, supernatural force causes the alcoholic father to lose his sanity.
EMN Notes: This one's complicated for me. I liked this film a lot more before I knew about The Shining book, which is arguably not as strong, but it only bothers me what didn't make it into the film. Trying to take it on its own, however, I DO think it's a great film if you disassociate it, probably Kubrick's best. Jack's meltdowns and the scene with at the end with the picture was brilliant. A lot of the scenes added on its own for the movie are iconic in their own rights. Whatever my personal opinion, it holds its status as an all time greatest horror film, and it's easy to see why. You can't have a channel of all time great horror movies and leave off this one.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1974
Synopsis: A group of college students on a road trip are captured by a family of cannibals.
EMN Notes: Perhaps it was because this was a pre-slasher movie world, but this film is disturbing, just not gory like you would expect. It's actually very similar to Halloween where it's actually among the classier films horror has to offer. It's actually very smart with its scares and very well directed. It's a series very wrongly accused of being shlocky, not that I wouldn't watch shlock as well, it's just not that. I especially love the Sawyer family. They're everything every horror villain family wants to be. They have a great dynamic that's outwardly scary, and has small touches that show there's a lot more to them than the surface. Leatherface and Grandpa, especially.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1986
Synopsis: A sheriff teams up with a radio DJ to take down the Sawyer family.
EMN Notes: This movie is ridiculous. It's an April Fool's Day joke of a film, in the best way. They got a serious screenwriter with the first film's director, and it has a completely different vibe from the first. This one is a bit more No More Heroes in tone. It's more gory, it's louder, it's more outlandish, and it's honestly stupider, but that's basically the point. It feels like Tobe Hooper knew he didn't want to do a retread, so he made what may be the first slasher parody. It couldn't be more obvious now, but it blended in so well in the 80's some didn't even realize. It's divisive, but it's amazing fun. It's hilarious, and delivers in gross out and gore.
The Thing
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1982
Synopsis: A group of scientists in the antarctic have been infiltrated by a shapeshifting alien creature that kills, and imitates its victims.
EMN Notes: Of all the films John Carpenter made that initially got trashed, and then were seen later as a masterpiece, this one is the most unbelievable. It is only rivaled with Cronenberg's The Fly for the best body horror of the 80's, and one of the best sci-fi horror films of all time. It has an amazing cast, and a lot of scenes that keep you on the edge of your seat. Not to mention an amazing setting, and special effects. Even now, you can feel just how cold it is as you watch it. If you could only watch two films by him, arguably the greatest horror director ever made, watch this one and Halloween.
The Wicker Man
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1973
Synopsis: A devout Christian police sergeant investigates a missing girl case on an island devoted to Celtic Paganism.
EMN Notes: This is arguably the most iconic English horror film to ever exist, easily England's best effort after the Hammer Dracula films, and the strangest film of the many 1970's religious horror. The main character in this film is so horribly unlikable, but it has its pay off. Everyone else is anything but a caricature. Everyone shows so much patience with him, and when they don't, it feels pretty justified. It does well what a lot the films that came after it didn't. It's a fascinating little aesop, nothing I would watch all the time, but a great once-in-a-while 70's art horror.
The Witch
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2015
Synopsis: A puritan family banished from their colony suspect a family member of witchcraft when the youngest son vanishes.
EMN Notes: Holy crap. I've sat on this film for ages for the right time, and it lived up to the hype. It's a solid religious thriller/mystery and dark fairy tale in the first half, and as soon as you hid the mid point, it becomes a spellbinding and uneasy roller coaster of a religious horror film. The key word being religion. This is a film about religion, and closed off, strict upbringings, and not counting the original Hellraiser, I would call it my new favorite in that category. I haven't been able to get the ending sequence out of my head since I saw it. I think this movie's probably my favorite thing I've seen so far this year on the channel. Once you get to the last act, it's so strong there's about four or five instances you feel like you're looking at the most fascinating painting at an art gallery. I'll be surprised if I ever take this off the schedule.
The Wolf Man
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1941
Synopsis: A Welshman who moved to America goes back to his hometown where he's bitten by what he believes to be a wolf. Now on every full moon, he becomes a rabid wolf man.
EMN Notes: This and Frankenstein are tied for me for my favorite classic Universal Horror film. It's a perfect run time, only over a little over an hour, and has amazing dialog, cinematography, and great little unsettling moments. I remember this one for being the very first movie to play on Horror last year, and it was a great way to kick it off. It was everything I wanted this channel to be, and I'm pretty sure that was the moment that Erin and I both realized what we had on our hands.
Theatre of Blood
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1973
Synopsis: After being humiliated, a theater actor fakes his suicide and goes into hiding so he can punish his critics on the Ides of March with themed punishments based on Shakespeare plays.
EMN Notes: It's a bit of a typecast from Dr. Phibes, but Vincent Price loved this film, because he loved Shakespeare and always wanted to act in it. This could not be more apparent because he has so much fun as the bad guy in this. He makes the film. This film's great if you are even semi-familiar with Shakespeare. His character, Edward Lionheart, is basically just a gimmicky Batman villain. It's got a campiness to it, but it's clearly intentional, and it makes it just all the more charming.
They Live
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1988
Synopsis: A loudmouth drifter finds sunglasses that show the truth about the world, namely that the ruling class are all secretly aliens that are manipulating the masses.
EMN Notes: We have so many Carpenter-Franco co-productions on EMN. Out of them, this feels the most understandable why it was considered a bit weird at first but became a big cult film. It's got a super unique premise, it stars Rowdy Roddy Piper, and it's anti-capitalism in the 80's. It specifically hates Ronald Reagan, and so do I, so points for that. I think the one thing that kills me about this one is that there's a literal six minute fight scene in it and literally nobody can agree if it sucks or is great.
Thir13en Ghosts
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2001
Synopsis: After the death of a ghost hunting uncle, the family inherits a mansion made almost entirely from glass with tons of revolving doors on the inside. Unfortunately for them, the mansion houses twelve killer ghosts who all get out at the exact same time.
EMN Notes: This is my favorite worst film on Horror. Legit. So, I really think this film would have been fine, it's not smart, but it has a great setting and set up. I really think they just picked the wrong main character and the editing basically ruins everything. I like the actor who plays the main character a lot, Tony Shalhoub. The problem is they had Matthew Lillard, who is the most interesting character in this, and he is only second or third most important. Unfortunately, he makes Tony's character seem kind of dull comparatively. The editing takes the cake, though. They add a flash every time they take off their glasses, which is all the time. It genuinely becomes hard to watch at points even as someone who doesn't have medical issues related to flashing lights. That's not even talking about the ending, which I just don't get. Keep in mind I love weird, artistic endings and interpretive stuff. This is just not one of them. It's literally just weird. GOD do I love it, though. Never watch this, but I will never remove it from our lineup.
Train to Busan
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2016
Synopsis: An asset manager takes his daughter on a train ride to see her mother when a zombie apocalypse breaks out.
EMN Notes: We had the pleasure of getting to see this one very recently (As of May of 2021). We both loved it, Erin even gave it her highest film rating, and I'm in the same boat. I love this one. WE love this one.
Trick 'r Treat
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2007
Synopsis: An anthology of interlocking horror shorts set on Halloween night all taking place within a fictional town in Ohio.
EMN Notes: I remember when this dropped. It honestly felt so huge and talked about on the internet at the time. I've still not yet seen it, but I'm amazed that in all these years it has never gotten a sequel. I remember people talking about it, and it seems very well liked, its director and producer went on to direct and produce Krampus and Godzilla: King of the Monsters. As recently as 2018, it got its own haunted house at the Universal horror nights festival. As it stands, I know many horror fans who call it a highlight of pre-2010s horror in the new millennium.
Tucker & Dale vs. Evil
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2010
Synopsis: Through a series of coincidences, two goodhearted hillbillies are mistaken for killers by a group of college students.
EMN Notes: I've seen this movie with my friends, with my mom, with Erin twice, and once on my own. Everyone I have shown it to loves it. It may seem like a simple set-up, but it honestly just keeps getting funnier the more the movie goes on. I've seen this film a few times by now, and to tell the truth, talking people into it is difficult because I think people will instinctively think of this film as offensive to southerners. It could honestly not be farther from the truth. Tucker and Dale are great characters because they are very likable, and have a lot of heart to them. The whole movie is hilarious, gory, suspenseful, but also it's feel-good. It's among the nicest of the R-Rated horrors we have, so it's always good to put on.
Us
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2019
Synopsis: A family's vacation is interrupted when everyone in the world is attacked by their doppelgangers.
EMN Notes: To be a little congratulatory, this is the film that cemented Jordan Peele to me as the current best horror director nowadays. He is the greatest gift horror has gotten since James Wan. I see a visionary in him we haven't seen since John Carpenter for as long as he makes horror. This film keeps the social commentary that Get Out had, while even more of the film is dedicated to horror. The range it takes for everyone to play two characters, and manage to play both someone to root for but also fear is incredible. Even the child actors do a great job. I remember loving it, but only when the ending hit did I realize how incredible it is. This is one of the best horror films in one of the best horror decades of all time, and I would point to it as among the best the industry has to offer.
Vampire Hunter D
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1985
Synopsis: The orphaned daughter of a werewolf hunter hires a vampire hunting dhampir to help her bring down a vampire noble.
EMN Notes: This was an experiment for this year, and I don't think it'll make it on often, but I think it's a genuinely cool little film especially the more I sit on it. The set-up feels very much like a fantasy/horror-themed Fist of the North Star, taking place in a post-apocalyptic setting and focusing around a usually quiet but always unstoppable enigmatic super person, but they both came out the same year, and it's incredibly unlikely they were rip-offs given the timing of everything and the fact that Vampire Hunter D is a full novel. The exact tone when watching feels like a mishmash of Hammer horror and a classic 80's action flick. It's a very quiet film but that leaves a lot of room for personal discussion and banter between the two leads. As with most 80's action films, the chemistry isn't really there, no matter how much they want to make the relationship romantic, but regardless, you do get appreciate them on their own. It makes me want a modern adaption of the novels in a watchable anime format. If they can swing it, maybe in a similar style to the original novel's illustrator, Yoshitaka Amano. Amano created Gatchaman, but is probably best known as the first major Final Fantasy concept artist who did designs up to FF6.
Vampire's Kiss
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1988
Synopsis: After being bitten by a woman he meets at a club, a cruel yuppie realizes he's now a vampire.
EMN Notes: What a fucking weird movie this is. We added this one on recommendation (thank you Kralyssa), and I had literally zero idea what this film was besides knowing it vaguely from the Toby Fox song with all the Nicolas Cage clips. Nicolas Cage as the main character in this is so unlikable, but how this all plays out sort of works out to the movie's advantage. I can't go into detail why, but its story structure feels like the two versions of Wicker Man stuck into a blender, except with vampires in New York. I honestly can't tell if this is supposed to be a serious movie, but it is a really funny one. I really respect Cage for just never being afraid to play a complete weirdo, and of all weird Cage films, this one is at least top three.
Wes Craven's New Nightmare
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 1994
Synopsis: Freddy Kruger has jumped into the real world to haunt Nancy Thompson's actress, Heather Langenkamp, and her son.
EMN Notes: Of all Wes Craven's efforts, this one isn't quite as clever as Scream or the original Nightmare, but it's a very unique and fun film, that's also just about Wes Craven's realization that he created a monster that fell out of his hands. A film like this could really only have been a personable story that he himself wanted to tell. It's not super scary, but worth a watch on premise alone. Even a rewatch, which is why I want it on this channel.
What We Do In The Shadows
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 2014
Synopsis: A fake documentary about four vampires sharing a flat in New Zealand.
EMN Notes: I've still not seen the show based on it, or the movie's spin-off tv series, but this one makes me giggle. This is a funny little not-exactly-indie film. I don't know if I'm preaching to the choir, since the film has only picked up in popularity, but there's a lot of great jokes in this one. It's made by Taiki Waikiti and Jermaine Clement, and if you've seen some of their other work, you know what to expect with it. It has a lot of fun awkwardness and great ironic humor, that plays off of vampire lore. The opening scene and Stu always gets me.
Willy's Wonderland
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2021
Synopsis: A drifting janitor is tricked into cleaning up a family center haunted by eight living animatronics.
EMN Notes: I'm staying in the dark until I can officially watch it, but I have wanted to watch this since I've heard the reviews. We initially put this on Grindhouse, but I never got to see it when it was airing, and frankly, I'll happily put on any Nic Cage horror movie I can find. He's about the only person to get me to want to watch a rip-off of Five Nights at Freddy's.
Young Frankenstein
Years in the Lineup: 2020, 2021
Year: 1974
Synopsis: Doctor Frankenstein's descendant, a teacher ashamed of his roots, inherits his family's Transylvanian castle and is talked into continuing the family business.
EMN Notes: I love this film. It's a lot more grounded to its own world than some other Mel Brooks parodies like Blazing Saddles or Spaceballs, so I would call this only barely a Frankenstein parody. It's definitely a comedy, but they do an amazing job of copying the style of the black and white Frankenstein films, down to a tee. There's never a bad reason to include a Mel Brooks film, but this one was a perfect fit for this channel.
Zombieland
Years in the Lineup: 2020
Year: 2009
Synopsis: A group of strangers take a road trip across a post-apocalyptic America looking for a place to be safe from zombies.
EMN Notes: I remember at one point feeling like I was the only person in my High School at one point who hasn't seen this. Now that I finally have, I gotta say...it's alright. Some of the jokes really don't land for me, some of them do. It had some good editing, and it made me want a Twinkie. I think it definitely came at the right time to capitalize on movies like Juno or Knocked Up, plus the zombie craze. I'm not saying it's a bad film at all, but I think the hype is a bit disproportionate to what it is, which is a goofy zombie comedy. Also, I also kept mixing up this movie with Adventureland. I half wonder sometimes if Eisenberg took up the roles for both films at the same time as a joke.
Zombieland: Double Tap
Years in the Lineup: 2021
Year: 2019
Synopsis: Tallahassee, Columbus, Wichita, and Little Rock leave the White House to go to Memphis, although on the way, they run into a smarter, faster, and seemingly indestructible zombie threat.
EMN Notes: We weren't wowed by the original Zombieland, but apparently the sequel is better, and was specifically recommended. I'm hoping this one is good.