Five horror films that made my hair stand on end

Horror: an intense feeling of fear, shock or disgust

I love horror movies and I have to confess that they make me feel alive. Biologically when you feel fear the body produces adrenaline and your heart starts biting faster. Did you know that watching a horror film can burn nearly up to 200 calories? My top five horror movie list includes the movies that I have seen once and were eerie and gory enough to make me not to want to watch them again. So here is my top five:

The descent (2005)

Low budget movie, filmed in the UK directed by Neil Marshall. It is about a group of women that start a hiking trip aiming to do some cave exploration but end up trapped in a complex of caves and guess what, they are not alone. There is enough blood and scary creatures crawling and eating our heroes alive. It was dark and bloody enough to be in my top five.

Ringu (1998)

Directed by Hideo Nakata, it is about a cursed video tape that kills the viewer 7 days after watching it. The film was released in 1998 and inspired numerous Hollywood remakes, however; I believe that nothing can be compared to the original. I will never forget the scene when the faceless girl crawls out of the TV. Ringu revitalised a new horror era that Hollywood had long forgotten.

The silence of the lamps (1991)

Directed by Jonathan Demme, Jodie Foster plays Clarice, a young FBI agent who approaches Dr Hannibal Lecter (Antony Hopkins) a serial killer in captivity and asks for his help in order to capture another serial killer that skins his victims. I believe that the film has changed the way horror was perceived by the Academy. Foster and Hopkins have won Oscars for their performances and Demme also for best director. It is scary because it is realistic and it can actually happen for real.

The shining (1980)

Firstly it is a Stephen King’s story and secondly it is being directed by Stanley Kubrick. A family moves to an isolated hotel where an evil entity possesses the father and leads him into violent acts. The son has psychic powers and he is able to see things from the past and the future. Finally Nicholson becomes so affected that he attempts to murder his family. Jack Nicholson is simply amazing, there is nothing scarier that his crazy look and the scene with the twins.

The exorcist (1973)

My number one of course is the exorcist. Regan a young girl played by Linda Blair gets possessed by a demon. After numerous medical tests and not being able to figure out what is wrong with their daughter the mother asks the help of a priest.  The father of a very good friend of mine once told me that when the exorcist was released people were passing out in the halls from the terror and the disturbance the film was causing. I will just close with one of Linda Blair’s personal quotes ‘Not a day goes by that somebody doesn't say something about it, which is interesting. I am possessed with The Exorcist’.

Nymphomaniac

I recently watched Lars von Triers’ new movie ‘Nymphomaniac’ and my feelings are a bit mixed about it. But how can they not be mixed since it is a Trier movie! The story is about Joe a self-diagnosed nymphomaniac. Seligman (Stellan Skarsgard) finds her badly beaten and abandoned in an alley and this is how our story starts. They end up in his apartment and Joe starts narrating her story since she remembers herself. He carefully listens and expresses his opinions often making metaphors linking Joe’s sex stories with fishing techniques, Fibonacci numbers, Bach and the way he wrote his music, Judaism, Edgar Alan Poe and religion conflicts between eastern and western Christianity. During this back and forth of giving and taking information about sex addiction and general knowledge you get the impression that he tries to comfort her pain and her emptiness about life. Both movies are divided into short chapters which is actually a very common ‘Trier way’. Part I finishes with Joe losing completely her sexual sensation because she falls in love and settles down with Jerome. Jerome is played by Shia LaBeouf and he is Joe’s first sexual experience. Part II is not as good as part I and in my opinion it could be one movie instead of two. In part II she tries to reclaim her sexuality mainly by exploring masochistic paths. Jerome leaves her, takes away their son and Joe ends up badly wounded physically and emotionally.

I found Charlotte Gainsbourg and her performance a little bit bland but I really liked the young blood in both movies Shia LaBeouf, Stacy Martin and my favourite Jamie Bell who plays the sadist in volume II. During the movie you can tell that the director doesn’t suffer from severe depression anymore and I actually found it happy compared to the last two films made by him. It is made to cause controversy and of course provoke. Sometimes I had the impression that I was watching a documentary and I was almost relaxed, but this feeling wasn’t lasting for long since the nymphomaniac was getting back in the game with only one purpose in mind, to shock you, leaving you speechless staring at the screen with your mouth and eyes wide open. Although it is suppose to be the last part of his depression trilogy after Antichrist and Melagholia I found it less dejected than the first two but equally confrontational.

In part II Trier reveals his real thoughts and purposes. Skarsgard is a virgin who perceives himself as asexual and he ends up confessing his secret to a nymphomaniac, very sarcastic actually. You can see strong antitheses in part I that evolves and finally explodes in part II. But I won’t reveal any further details for the ones who haven’t watched it. During the movie we also see Christian Slater, Uma Thurman and Williem Dafoe. Nymphomaniac is not recommended for the ones that haven’t watched any other Trier movie since it could be characterised as shocking and sadistic. For von Trier I can say with certainty that you either love his work or you just hate it and overall Nymphomaniac is a good film and I enjoyed it, but definitely not one of his best.