Spookathon 2022: Metal Revolution's Horror Film Picks

October is finally here. The days are going to start getting shorter, candy corn is finally back in vogue, and it’s socially acceptable to scare people and maybe not get beat up in return (although I can’t make any promises on that last one though). Most importantly though, it’s finally legal to watch horror movies again! Yeah sure, you could watch horror movies all year round if you wanted to. However, there’s something about watching them this time of year that just hits different. If you readers know my show (and by extension me), then you’ll know that the one thing I love more than heavy metal music, is horror movies. Now, I could have gone into this list and just listed off a bunch of “essentials” to watch, but everyone does that. Everyone makes the list that has all the classics like Halloween, The Exorcist, Night of the Living Dead, and so on. And while those are all fantastic and crucial movies for this season, I figured I’d come at this with a slightly different approach and instead give you a few movies that maybe you haven’t seen yet (and one you almost certainly have). The following five movies are ones that are very near and dear to me, and it pains me to not see some of them mentioned as much as the classics when talking about the so-called “best ever” from the genre. Sure, maybe objectively some of these aren’t necessarily on the same level as some of the aforementioned classics, but subjectively these are all movies that honestly I’d rather watch instead of some of the classics. But I digress. If you come away from this with some potential new favorites to keep in annual rotation for this season, then awesome. If not, well then you still have the crucial classics to return to, and I’ll totally be watching those right there with you this season too.

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Phantasm (1979)

I’ll go ahead and get this out of the way now: Phantasm is definitively my number one favorite horror movie, and has been for maybe over a decade at this point. Phantasm might be, for lack of a better expression, the “weirdest” movie I’ve included on this list. It’s a movie that doesn’t have the clearest story to follow at times (due mostly to the fact that they practically made everything up as they went along throughout over a year of filming), instead opting to immerse the viewer into a dreamlike surreal atmosphere, that’s filled with creepy imagery and inhabited a sinister villain with Angus Scrimm’s slenderman-esque mortician “The Tall Man”. Anchoring Don Coscarelli’s mausoleum-set ordeal are brothers Mike and Jody, who’s own personal struggles regarding each other (Mike’s fear of his older brother one day leaving him, and Jody’s contemplation over the thought of leaving Mike to live his own life) add not just a heart to Phantasm, but also rich undertones of very real and weighty emotion. It’s these emotions regarding fears of abandonment and loneliness, mixed with the fear of mortality (both one’s own as well as their loved ones) that give what could have otherwise been a complete schlockfest a heavier seriousness that meshes well with the more fantastic elements of this mausoleum-set shocker. With the malevolent Tall Man pursuing the brothers by means of reanimated and shrunken cadavers, and sentient flying spheres that drain all of your blood when they strike, Phantasm is an underrated nightmare, that will have you questioning if any of what you just saw was real by the time you reach its shock ending.

Hereditary (2018)
Ok, so maybe not all of my picks are films that could be considered “underrated”. However, Ari Aster’s terrifying feature debut can absolutely still be counted as a gem, and I will always go out of my way to find excuses to talk about it. The most recent film on this list, personally I would say that Hereditary is absolutely a contender for the title of “best horror movie” from the past decade (or at the very least one of the very best). Aster’s film works as well as it does by shining the spotlight on its heart-wrenching family drama side first and foremost over its more traditional horror movie elements. However, in doing so, the underlying nightmare is left to simmer like an active volcano that’s waiting to erupt. And when it does eventually burst, the horrifying imagery presented in its wake will forever sear itself into your mind each time you close your eyes (or enter a dark room). To say much more would be to outright spoil the horrors Aster has in store for his viewers, but suffice it to say, Hereditary is maybe the best film to come out of the current wave of “elevated horror”. It is also a movie that I believe will 100% be remembered as a bonafide horror classic for generations to come.

The Devil Rides Out (1968)

If you (like me) are a fan of classic horror films of old, then there’s a good chance you know Hammer Studios. While the British studio may have made a name for themselves in the genre with their 1950’s/60’s revivals of 1930’s Universal Monster icons such as Dracula and Frankenstein, I say that their 1968 adaptation of Dennis Wheatley’s The Devil Rides Out is the studio’s true underrated masterpiece. Hammer’s Dracula star, the legendary Christopher Lee, is our protagonist here in a rare heroic appearance as the occultist, Duc de Richleau, who’s trip to visit an old friend results in tangling with a satanic cult in the English countryside. Having seen Lee portray villains for most of his career, watching him use his commanding presence to fight evil for a change feels like a breath of fresh air, especially when playing off of fellow British legend Charles Gray as the sinister cult leader Mocata. Helmed by the great Terence Fisher (another Hammer mainstay), and featuring phenomenal special effects that breathe life into images of Baphomet and his living nightmares, The Devil Rides Out isn’t an easy film to come across on streaming, nor is it a film that many today mention when discussing “greatest horror films”. However, it is a true gem to behold if you put in the work to track it down, one that holds up remarkably well upon repeat viewing.

Trick ‘r’ Treat (2007)

I’m a sucker for a well-executed anthology. The horror genre has many great anthologies that I could have included on this list (Creepshow, VHS, and Tales From the Crypt come to mind), however it’s Michael Dougherty’s 2007 ode to the season Trick ‘r Treat that was the no-brainer inclusion here. Presenting four stories, all interwoven with each other and set on Halloween night, I’m a firm believer that this is the definitive Halloween film. It lays out all of the time-honored traditions of the holiday, and revels in them from the very first frame till the very last. Connecting the four stories (as well as the film’s bookending segments) is the seemingly innocent pint-sized trick-or-treater Sam, out patrolling the streets and enforcing the holiday’s traditions (read: rules) in his burlap sack mask and orange pajamas. Featuring fun and sinister nods to classic Halloween legends, and characters that play with traditional “innocent” and “evil” roles from talent such as Dylan Baker, Brian Cox, and Anna Paquin among others, if Trick ‘r Treat isn’t already a firm Halloween season viewing tradition for you then it soon will be. Released directly to DVD upon its initial debut (and later on Blu-Ray in the years since), the film is finally seeing its first limited theatrical run this season for its 15th anniversary. If you have the opportunity to see Trick ‘r Treat on the big screen then absolutely try for that, but definitely try to experience this treat and all of its tricks any way you’re able to this season.

Black Sunday (1960)

The year is 1960, and while Alfred Hitchcock is busy making a statement in Hollywood by launching the horror genre into the modern era with Psycho, over in Italy, Mario Bava is busy offering a firm reminder that classic horror isn’t going anywhere with his masterful directorial debut Black Sunday. Dripping head to toe with the same gothic atmosphere that helped first establish the genre back in the 1920’s and 1930’s, Bava crafts a tale of witchcraft and vampiric evil consuming the life of a young princess and her family, and the young doctor who inadvertently intervenes. Featuring horror icon Barbara Steele in dual roles as the tormented Princess Katia, and her evil centuries-old ancestor Asa, the film is a beautifully shot nightmare from its opening inquisition to its fiery finale. Bava may have gone on to adopt Hitchcock’s style of contemporary bloodlust soon after with films like The Girl Who Knew Too Much and Blood and Black Lace (thus birthing the “giallo” genre, which would later on heavily influence slasher films of the 1980’s). However, Black Sunday will forever be one of the true shining gems in Mario Bava’s career. A masterclass in gothic horror done just right, with vampirism, witches, crumbling castles, and shadowy terror for days.