A couple years ago I watched ThanksKilling as part of my marathon. It was probably one of the dumbest killer puppet movies I’ve ever seen, and I loved it. I’m blown away that the directors, and the fucking Turkie, did a list for me of their favorite movies.
ThanksKilling 3 just came out last year, thanks to generous donations from Kickstarter. It’s the follow up to an outright insane movie about a demonic, murderous turkey. Everyone connected to this movie is bat shit crazy. Which, incidentally enough, is probably why they were nice enough to create lists of their favorite horror movies for me.
Jordan Downey – Director/Writer (in no particular order)
1 – Critters – my all time favorite movie, of any genre. The movie I watched over and over as a kid. For me it’s the perfect blend of sci-fi, horror, and comedy. At one point this and Star Wars made me want to be a bounty hunter when I grew up.
2 – The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) – The moment when Leatherface first appears, smashes the guys head, then closes the door has stuck with me since I first saw it. Plus, I’m crazy about the end scene with the chainsaw twirling in the road.
3 – The Fly – the protagonist/ antagonist switch is great but it’s the ending that makes this one of my favorites. The Fly pulling the gun to its own head is so twisted and sad.
4 – The Descent – saw it opening night at Sundance and scared the shit out of me. As lame as jump scares can be, they work for me in this one. And the suspense is fantastic leading up to the first reveal of the creatures.
5 – The Devil’s Rejects – great movie with a fantastic ending. Love how Rob Zombie makes you care about horrible people and question why you feel bad for their demise.
6 – The Langoliers – Yes, the visual effects are bad and don’t hold up at all, but the atmosphere and tension this miniseries builds is incredible.
7 – Friday the 13th Series – Of the big slasher franchises, this is my favorite. As much as I love Freddy, Michael Myers, and Leatherface I just always preferred the hockey mask and Crystal Lake setting.
8 – The Blair Witch Project – I grew up around the woods, so this one still gets me. Always preferred the truly authentic feel of this over the Paranormal Activity series. Final shot in the house of the guy standing in the corner gave me serious chills as a kid.
9 – Maximum Overdrive – As cheesy as this is, I love this movie. All the little scenes with the vending machine, lawnmower, and ice cream truck really work for me. I always felt like the machines had you cornered everywhere you went and there was no escape.
10 – Attack the Block – a modern favorite. Creature design was spot on. Unique characters and setting make it a fun, fresh take on the monster movie. Loved it.
Kevin Stewart – Writer (in no particular order)
1 – The Exorcist – I saw this for the first time when I was 13 and it literally traumatized me, no joke. For the next 3 years I had to sleep with my door open and the light on in the hallway. As I grew older and became a filmmaker myself, I was able to have a great appreciation for what Friedkin was able to do an audience with that film.
2 – Pet Cemetery – Everyone remembers Gabe and how horrifying he was but really, it was that black cat that scared the shit out of me. One of the scariest back-from-the-dead movies I have ever seen. It beats every zombie movie out there.
3 – Child’s Play – As classic as it gets. The first two films in the series were downright terrifying. I’ll always remember this movie as one of the first horror films I was allowed to watch. Chucky – and Good Guy – is as memorable a character as it gets.
4 – Let The Right One In – Not necessarily a scary movie but an extremely well told film. In an era full of dumb vampire movies, I was surprised to see that there was still an original idea that could revolve around them. The kids’ performances make this movie.
5 – Alien – This goes on this list for the most disturbed I have ever been while watching a movie. The chest burster dinner scene will go down in history as one of the best in the horror genre. Needless to say the rest of the movie also conveys a great sense of suspense and dread that I will never forget. The thought of a small stomach spawned creature crawling around in the vents gives me the creeps still to this day.
6 – Rosemary’s Baby – An oldie but one that I didn’t watch for the first time until earlier this year. Shame on me because I was surprised at how effective it still was. A slow burn that will creep the fuck out of you from the first shot on.
7 – The Thing – Holy shit! Probably some of the best, most disturbing creature animatronic sequences in a movie ever. For me, this is John Carpenter’s best movie. Even if you take away the crazy creatures this is still an incredibly well acted and directed movie.
Turkie – Turkey
1 – Child’s Play 3 – I love Chucky… his voice, the way he talks, his kills. But I want to be better than him God damn it! So watching this piece of crap makes me feel better about myself.
2 – Jack Frost – I’d fist pound the shit out of his snowy hand for taking down Christmas like I took down Thanksgiving.
3 – Uncle Sam – Festive and fun, this one makes me look forward to that stupid summer holiday Independence Day.
4 – Fried Green Tomatoes – Turkeys have feelings too, you know.
5 – Meet The Feebles – Being a weird puppet myself, I have a lot of respect for, well, other weird puppets. This movie takes the rod-operated cake.
For those interested, here is the trailer for ThanksKilling 3 [youtube http://youtu.be/I-u5baokRi0]
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