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[JaredH]

Okay, I know Christmas is almost a week away and what not. However, I've noticed a trend in the US lately. Is it just me or are the movie studios realizing that gullible teenage girls desperately in need of a shower, a few knives/chainsaws/various sharp/blunt objects, and a lot of special effects just arent having the same effect they used to back in the early days of Jason and Freddy's careers?

I had very very very limited exposure to any of the Asian horror flicks that have recently been adapted to American film before this year. I knew "The Ring" came from "Ringu", what I didnt know was that "Ringu" was almost 4 years old when "The Ring" came out on American shores. Now weve seen an American remake of Ju-On, "The Grudge" for those unfamiliar with the Japanese name. We'll see "The Ring Two" next spring. However, there are more movies in the "Ringu" series. Theres also a "Ju-On 2". These are just a couple of some very good, and VERY scary, flicks that have come from Japan in the last 10 years. Korea and Hong Kong have some very good ones as well.

As GHammer will vouch or has probably already mentioned, being in China, you have the opportunity to get your hands on almost any DVD imaginable. If you can't see it on the shelf of your local shop, just tell them the name, and they'll usually have it for you in a week. I've been able to get my hands on some PRIMO Asian horror flicks. Which has lead me to this...

Westerners don't have a friggin clue how to make a good horror flick. The last good master of horror that didn't use rediculous amount of blood and guts was Alfred Hitchcock. Since then they have all gone for shock value. Its not about horror anymore, its about seeing how many people in the audience they can send running to the bathroom to vomit.

If any of you are into horror flicks, then you may have already found this little piece of horror movie heaven. If you haven't, I would strongly suggest looking into Asian horror. It's right on the money. It's more about the situation and the thought of things happening. They also really know how to put a musical score together that will have your spine crawling right out of your body.

Maybe I'm just into psychological stuff and it's just me. If so, disregard my rablings. However, for those interested, check it out. I don't condone frivelous downloading of protected property, but if your curious, search it on the internet or download a few clips. If you like what you see then head over to http://www.yesasia.com. There you can find all sorts of Asian music, movies, and books at reasonable prices. The average cost of their merchandise is about the same as an American DVD, CD, or book in a mall anywhere in the US.

[Mastiff]

I would appreciate it if you said "westerners with the exeption of italians"! The row of zombie, cannibal, extreme slasher and related genre movies that came out of the "boot country" in the 80's from directors like Fulci and Deodato ate american horror for breakfast (with a few exceptions, like Romero's Living Dead movies (the remake of Dawn of the Dead dissappointed me - it was far from bloody enough!)) in most genres. Also you have the rather arty horror movies from Dario Argento, like Tenebrae. So there are some westerners who knows their stuff.

[sirshambling]

I prefer the Gothic stuff myself - you can't beat Chris Lee, Vincenet Price or Peter Cushing. Much more subtle...

John

[Mastiff]

Yeah, subtle is not the word for italian... I just finished viewing "Zombie Flesh Eaters" by Fulci - I saw it around 15 years ago, but after having seen the new Dawn of the Dead, which I found far too mild, the violence and gore was five notches below what it should have been, I ordered 10-15 classic zombie flicks from play.com. ZFE has picture and sound quality miles below DotD, but the enjoyment was leaps and bounds above! Acting that goes from terrible to passable, totally unnecessary nudity (who scuba dives topless?), good looking women where the nude ones end up dead, superstitious natives, loads of gore and a really eerie score. This is what horror is about to me!  Oh, and a slow impalement of an eye and zombie versus shark really piles it on!

[JaredH]

I prefer the Gothic stuff myself - you can't beat Chris Lee, Vincenet Price or Peter Cushing. Much more subtle...

John

Oh man... I'm ashamed of myself now. I can't believe I forgot Vincent Price. What a master he was. I still watch his Poe collection and get the willies. It's just plain creepy stuff. Vincent was a master story teller, and he had the persona to boot. Not to mention that he looked and talked exactly like my grandfather, which was an added bonus.

I never got into the zombie flicks. They were just too, not real enough for me. I dunno. However, I did enjoy "28 Days Later". It was very well done. Not over produced. Cinematography was dead on. And the absence of computer generated effects made it even more enjoyable.

I still say theres a fine line between a "Horror" movie, and a "Shocker" movie. A horror movie will scare your socks off and give you nightmares. A shocker movie will induce vomiting and give you a burning hatred for the color red. They also will give you the peeking through the fingers or, peeking over the pillow syndrome. Horror movies tend to keep you glued to the screen to see whats next, but they give that extra little level of trepidation that makes you leap at the slightest change in tone or scenery. Shocker movies are much too blatent for me. I like the subtleness of a good, creepy, headtrip.

Like when you check out the classics that made Bela Lugosi famous. Albeit by todays standards they are extremly cheesy, there was an ominous overtone to them in their day. There was a certain subtle creepyness. Now, I prefer horror movies to have a bit more of a "This could sooo happen" kind of atmosphere, but the classics were good at creating that creepy atmosphere for their time.

[Mastiff]

I've seen them all. Well, most of them. Chris Lee, Bela, Lon Chaney (wolfman) and so on. Amusing, but not my cup of tea. I prefer the updated version in Van Helsing. But only a few horror movies have scared me. The Changeling and The Sixth Sense are two, there may be a couple of more, but those are the ones I remember now. As for vomiting, that would have to be too much beer or popcorn during the zombie flicks! 

[Quisp]

Netflix has a lot of good asian horror as well as horror from other cultures (or lack thereof... )

Check out Audition...