Ten Instruments Of Evil: Popshifter‘s Horror Movie Picks (And Five To Avoid)

1. Basket Case: Frank Henenlotter, 1982 (United States)
Cheerful Duane Bradley doesn’t seem to fit in with his new neighbors, the residents of a seedy motel in New York City’s red light district. First off, he pays with a giant wad of cash. Then, he carries his laundry around in a basket with a padlock. Finally, he buys a lot of hamburgers and hot dogs, but doesn’t eat them himself. Despite the cast of amateurs and a budget of less than $50,000, Basket Case is surprisingly compelling and often downright scary. Director Frank Henenlotter also created Frankenhooker as well as two Basket Case sequels.

Deathdream

2. Deathdream (aka Dead of Night): Bob Clark, 1974 (United States)
An early commentary on the effects of the Vietnam War on small town America, Deathdream is palpably frightening. Richard Backus plays Andy Brooks with a combination of chilling menace and malevolent sarcasm (a prototype for Taxi Driver‘s Travis Bickle, perhaps?). Tom Savini and Alan Ormsby do a spectacular job with makeup and special effects and Carl Zittrer provides the creepy soundtrack. Bob Clark also directed the excellent Black Christmas (released a few months later), but Deathdream is more fully realized and much more terrifying.

3. Demons: Lamberto Bava, 1985 (Italy)
Cheryl and Kathy skip class to attend a free movie screening at a newly-refurbished theatre. It seems like a good idea, but then again, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. . . unless you’re a demon. Featuring gory and hilarious special effects obviously inspired by Rick Baker’s work in An American Werewolf in London and The Howling, Demons is short on plot, but full of suspense and scares. It was co-written by Italian horror legend Dario Argento (Suspiria) and directed by Lamberto Bava, son of Mario (Blood and Black Lace).

Demons

4. Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark: John Newland, 1973 (United States)
An outstanding addition to the “neurotic woman” genre of horror films, Don’t Be Afraid Of The Dark was actually a made-for-TV movie. Although I never saw it until more recently, the film terrified me as a child after someone described it to me as “the movie with the things in the fireplace.” We hear the “things in the fireplace” before we see them so our fear of them is heightened. The ambiguity of the their origins (Demons? Monsters? Evil spirits? Voodoo dolls?) also increases our sense of terror.

5. Just Before Dawn: Jeff Lieberman, 1981 (United States)
What makes this slasher film stand out from others is the setting. Unless you’ve ever been camping, you might not realize how truly foreboding the woods can feel. There is a creepy whistling sound motif used throughout this movie that makes the hair on one’s neck quiver. There is also a fantastic, unexpected twist as well as graphic, but not distracting, violence. Gregg Henry, who plays Warren, also played Mitchell Huntzberger on Gilmore Girls. Writer/director Jeff Lieberman also directed the cult classic, Blue Sunshine.

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Movies six through ten
Five movies to avoid

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