Horror movies that frighten(ed) me!

When I was a young 'Jack the Lad' in the mid 1960's, I was an avid cinemagoer. I loved films. Couldn't get enough of 'em. In fact, on average, I would go at least twice, sometimes three times a week!

My wife, (then my girlfriend), was - thankfully - also a lover of films and so would quite happily accompany me.

Unlike others of our tender teen age, we went to the cinema, (or 'The Flicks', as we used to call them), to actually watch the film. Not for us the snog in the back row, oh no. Our interest was what was being shown on the screen!

In those far off, halcien days, cinemas (unlike the uniform impersonal boxes they are today), had great character and were more like grand theatres.

With names like; 'The Essoldo'; 'The Gaumont'; 'The Odeon'; 'The Empire'; 'The Shaftesbury' and 'The Palace', these popular places of entertainment were beautifully decorated. They had crystal chandeliers hanging from wonderfully ornate ceilings. Cherubs holding lighted, (electric), torches looked down from the decorated walls and there were balconies, plush carpeting and huge blood red curtains covering the screen. Going to the cinema was a proper night out! And quite a cheap one too!

Entrance fee was usually in the region of one shilling and ninepence, (approx: 9 pence).

A hot dog was about one shilling and sixpence, (7 1/2 pence), and you could get tubs of ice cream and ice lollies for between threepence, (less than2 pence), and ninepence, (less than 4 pence).

So, as you can see, pretty cheap.

Although our taste in films was pretty diverse, it goes without saying that - much like my character, Quentin Greely, (see 'The Short Cut' near the end of this blog) - our main passion was horror films. We just loved being frightened by spooky suspenseful movies.

Back in the 60's, the masters of the genre, in my humble opinion, were Hammer Films. Although low budget films, they had a very special quality about them.

Mainly starring, (the late, great), Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, (recently in Lord of the Rings), these films could have you on the edge of your seat with some fabulous heart stopping moments.

'The Mummy'; 'Dracula'; 'Curse of the Werewolf'; 'Frankenstein'; 'Jekyll and Hyde'; Hammer covered them all... superbly.

Of course there were other makers of excellent horror films including United Artists and MGM but Hammer, I think, topped them all!

And compared with todays horror bloodfests, I have to say, on reflection, that the old, creaky horror films of my youth were far scarier. As I recall, they had far less blood and much more suspenseful scenes.

Okay, I admit I may be suffering from an acute case of nostalgia-itus here but there are honestly very few of todays horror films that scare me as much. (Maybe 'cos I'm older and wiser?)

So, are horror movies scary anymore? With a very few odd exceptions, I really don't think so.

Most are pretty formulaic these days, variations on a single theme. Again, in my humble opinion, I think they rely too much on blood and gore and special effects and usually offer a very weak plot rather than a cracking storyline.

And in most cases you virtually know whats coming and so very rarely enjoy the heart stopping 'jump' factor, which is what all good scary films are about.

Now, I'm not saying there aren't any really good modern movies. There are some over the years that gave me a bit of a scare. 'Saw' was pretty good as was 'Wrong Turn'; 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre'; 'Constantine'; 'Godsend'; 'The Mummy I & II'; 'Alien'; 'Hide and Seek'; 'Silence of the Lambs'; 'Se7en'; 'The Ring'; 'The Sixth Sense' and a few others of that ilk.

All I'm saying is that, apart from the odd few, most of todays horror movies don't have that 'toe curling, stomach tingling aaarrrgggghhh!' factor that all horror fans love. Whereas the older movies, like 'The War of the Worlds', (original version much better than Spielbergs effort), 'The Thing from Another World', (again much better than the Carpenter remake), Hitchcock's 'Psycho' and 'The Birds', usually did.

To give you an idea of what I mean, let me cite an example:

'Nosferatu'

Back in 1985, my then 16 year old son, a film fanatic like me, decided to watch a 1923 black and white silent horror film about the vampire Nosferatu.

Now my son, having been brought up watching colour TV didn't particularly like watching black and white films, and certainly not silent ones. Refused point blank to watch them.

But in this instance, he thought he would watch this one, just for a laugh.

I can tell you that by the end of the movie, my son was not laughing. This grainy 72 year old silent film had scared him witless and had given him his first 'toe curling, stomach tingling aaarrrgggghhh!' factor.

He's loved that movie ever since!

It was the dark shadows and suspense that got to him. No blood, no gore, just a movie that allowed him to use his own imagination to scare him.

Naturally, the older films don't scare me now, and they do look very dated and somewhat creaky, but I still think they are special and love watching them.

Well that's my opinion, (which probably doesn't count for much), but, what do you think? Is there too much emphasis on the use of blood and gore and not enough on a suspenseful plot? Or do you think todays films are better and scarier than the early horror films?

P.S. One of the greatest cult horror films of all time...

... is over 30 years old. Still so fresh, it's hard to believe, isn't it!