Favorite classic horror movies

[Shangas]

You didn't see any Frankenstein movies until last year? Son was made in 1939. At any rate, it is a well-photographed film with great sets.

I don't mean LITERALLY 70 years ago. I mean around 70 years ago. I watched Son of Frankenstein...golly...I've forgotten when...five years or more ago, now. Wonderful movie with Basil Rathbone. I know there were at least two others. I watched the sequel to Son of Frankenstein, whose name evades me at the moment...

 

[John in Covina]

I have always thought that a Universal Pictures Monster film celebration at a local theater would be great.

Wikipedia has an interesting article covering the Universal Monsters period here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Monsters

 

[bunnyb.gal]

I'll go for "The Old Dark House" as a favourite, and I also love William Castle films. With the exception of his re-do of "The Old Dark House", which was abysmal. This having been said, I will happily sit in front of almost any horror film!

I'd love to attend a Universal festival - dusk to dawn (okay, noon to dawn) classic monsters. Great idea!

 

[Widebrim]

I watched the sequel to Son of Frankenstein, whose name evades me at the moment...

That would be Ghost of Frankenstein...It was followed by Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, and by House of Frankenstein.

 

[CharlieB]

That would be Ghost of Frankenstein...It was followed by Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman, and by House of Frankenstein.

And, or course, Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein

 

[Shangas]

Aaah,I haven't seen the Abbott & Costello one. I loved "Ghost of Frankenstein" it was so cool!! And so creepy!

 

[Widebrim]

^^The Abbott and Costello one is loved by some, hated by purists. The mixing of Universal's monsters with the comedic duo, I believe, was actually the logical end for the former, since their characters had been milked out already by the studio, so what not let them be a bit parodied in the end. I actually like the film, and think that the monsters are treated respectfully. Lugosi has some funny moments this time as Dracula, and Lon Chaney (as always) plays it straight, and he looks good in his hat, dark suit, dark shirt, and light tie (that is, when he's not the Wolf Man...).

 

[CharlieB]

There is almost an entire sub-genre of humor based horror films. This one, the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Monster Squad, etc.

Not sure why, maybe because most monster movies are a little campy anyway, but the mix does seem to work well.

 

[John in Covina]

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein remains a favorite for me. While it is funny, there are some really good scary parts, such as Abbott in the museum with the opening and closing of Dracula's coffin. The tension is built really well. Same thing for the scene with Abbott strapped to the gurney unable to move and being caught between the Wolfman and the Frankenstein Monster.

Lon Chaney is great as the straight man for Abbott's wisecracking.

 

[Widebrim]

Lon Chaney is great as the straight man for Abbott's wisecracking.

And Costello's...Chaney usually had a limited acting range, but was able to break out in a couple of films, like in Of Mice and Men. The Wolf Man character, as he often said, was all his, and I think that he always did a good job of it. (His performances as Larry Talbot are another thing.) I liked him in a couple of the Inner Sanctum films, where he got a chance to be "the good guy." Chaney was actually quite dapper in the latter series, complete with moustache and double-breasted suits. It looks like Universal gave him a (very) partial hairpiece in some of his films, to cover up a slight receding in the front of his hairline...What's a shame, beside his typcasting, is how he did not get along well with Evelyn Ankers, with whom he co-starred in quite a few movies.

 

[eldredbucknor]

My favorite classic horror movies are: Contamination, The Terrorphile: The Gremlin Show, Ju-on: The Grudge, The House That Dripped Blood, Shock Waves and Island of Lost Souls.

 

[Undertow]

...Honorable mention - Night of the Hunter & Cape Fear - Don't know if they are horror movies per se, but Robert Mitchum was scarey in both of them!

Absolutely! Mitchum is chilling in both rolls - loved them!

 

[Feraud]

I'll go for "The Old Dark House" as a favourite,

Oh yes, this film has great atmosphere. Karloff is a pleasure to watch.

I'll add Mad Love with the amazing Peter Lorre to my earlier list.

 

[davidraphael]

I forgot one of my favourites!

Carry on Screaming!

[video=youtube;8jPn4g-eR48]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jPn4g-eR48[/video]

 

[RockyHorror]

This is actually such a hard question! I'm a big sucker for the classics though: Nosferatu, Dracula, Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, etc

 

[Mr Vim]

Hmm, what defines a classic really?

This may seem a little unusual but my favorite monster has always been the characters who are more real... Oh Frankenstein, The Mummy, and the other fellows are fine and dandy... but I think the greatest on screen monster is Amon Goeth, played by Ralph Fiennes in Schindler's List. It was the first time I had seen Fiennes in any role and it scared me. When I heard Fiennes was playing Voldemort, I though, oh wow they're going really dark. Every role he has been in I cannot shake the image of him as Goeth, its that terrifying ( I COULD NOT BELIEVE HE WAS THE LOVE INTEREST IN Maid In Manhattan.)

Even at the character's end in the film, he's unwavering, evil, and just sick... that's a true monster. I still need to read the book because I am curious if the real Goeth was as awful as how Fiennes portrayed him (cannot imagine much embellishment there.)

But if it needs to be a classic, I would say Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde though I feel no film has truly captured the character well enough.

 

[frussell]

I remember my grandmother, who passed away in the 80s, telling me that when she was a child and saw the original "Frankenstein," it completely terrified her, and people were fainting in the audience. I love the movie, but it seems so mild now, with all the gore we've been subjected to the last 40 or 50 years. The only movie that really ever scared me as a kid was "Psycho," and I've never been able to figure out why. Hitchcock's lighting, the score, all of it just freaked me out when I was little, and I remember having to watch some G-rated late night T.V. for the next few hours with my parents so I could sleep. Frank

 

[Mr Vim]

Ah Norman Bates, good choice.

 

[michaelwaughan]

According to me these are all my favorite Classic Horror movies :
1. Scream
2. My Bloody Valentine Day
3. The Number 23
4. Friday the 13th

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

Don't know if you'd call them classic horror but all three of my favorites had either Golden Era settings or themes:

1. Angel Heart
2. The Shining
3. Ghost Story