Festival Of Fear: Day 27: The List: Real-Life Vampires

 ~by Marie Robinson

Vampires have fascinated and frightened people for centuries, but there are many who have taken their love of bloodsuckers too far, and imitated them in gruesome crimes. This blood-drenched article is dedicated to the “real-life” vampires.

Vincenzo Verzeni

Hailing from Italy, Verzeni—like most serial killers—suffered abuse from a family member, in this case his alcoholic father. It wasn’t long before Vincenzo, himself, began to show signs of aggression; at 18 he attacked his young cousin in her sleep, attempting to bite her neck. By the age of twenty he had assaulted two more women and one man. He was arrested in 1873 and convicted for the murder of two women, whose bodies he left extremely defiled. Both victims were strangled to death, giving Verzeni one of his names, “The Strangler of Women”; both were found severely mutilated, with bites on their neck and thighs, strips of flesh torn off, and genitals and organs removed. It would soon be discovered that Verzeni was a cannibal, a piquerist, and a vampire. He would bite into the flesh of his victims and drink their blood, and admitted that he found immense pleasure in the act, thus giving him the name, “The Vampire if Bergamo”. He avoided execution by plea of insanity and died in prison in 1918.

 

Marcelo de Andrade 

Marcela De Andrade only drank the blood of two of his fourteen victims, but it was enough to give him the name, “The Vampire of Niterói”. Sexually and physically abused at a young age, de Andrade led a horrifying life from the start. He became a prostitute at age fourteen, and engaged in a relationship with an older man two years later. At 17 he attempted to sexually assault his own ten-year-old brother. When de Andrade was 23 he began to attend the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, and it was there that he heard a sermon that lead him to believe that children who died before the age of 13 automatically went to heaven. In April of 1991 he began his killing spree of 14 boys between the ages of 6 and 13, all of whom he also sexually assaulted. Other atrocities performed on his victims included necrophilia, decapitation, and, of course, blood-drinking. He believed that by ingesting the boys’ blood he would obtain their youth and beauty. After being arrested in December of the same year, he was later declared insane and remains in custody to this day, but not after escaping once in 1997.

Fritz Haarmaan 

Born in 1879 in Hanover, Germany, Fritz Haarmaan was forced into the military by his poor parents. He began molesting children in 1898, while enrolled in the military, and was sent to a mental institution after being declared unfit to stand trial, but escaped. Although Haarmaan remained a criminal all his life and made his living through theft and trade on the black market, police never suspected him as he worked as informant for them. Fritz Haarmaan would commit his first murder in 1918, and would not stop until 1924, after he had acquired a suspected 27 victims. Haarmaan preyed upon young men between the ages of 10 and 22 who were runaways, orphans, or prostitutes. After luring his victims into his house, he would sexually assault them and kill them by biting down on their necks—he would call this fatality his “love bite” in trial. Afterwards he would dismember them, scalp them, and dump their remains in the Leine River. Haarmaan would place his victims skull around to city for people to find. He was dubbed, “the Vampire of Hanover” and arrested in June 1924, and executed a year later by way of the guillotine.


There are a number more known “historical vampires”, each as horrifying and intriguing as the last. I could go on, but I trust that I have ruined your appetite for the rest of the day. I’ll leave you time to recover for tomorrow’s post, but I advise bringing a wreath of garlic to bed.

Festival of Fear: Day 20: The List: Top Ten Most Annoying Kids In Horror

In stark contrast to the post I did on the Top Ten (Horror Kids) I'd Adopt is this particular post.  And while it may seem like I would choose kids like Damien or Esther, that's not what I'm talking about here.  What I mean is the children that annoy me, not necessarily the kid-villains.

These are kids that I'd kind of like to punch in the face.

Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) from CHILD'S PLAY

I hate this kid.  I don't think there's a more whiny child in horror or perhaps any other genre. It would have suited me just fine if Chucky would have just offed Andy in the first reel.  He whined and whined until Mommy had to end up buying that damn Good Guy doll from a street bum and look where that got them!  He's stupid enough to take orders from a freaking doll and gets a couple of murder raps thrown at him, all the while assuring everyone that he and Chucky are friends till the end!!

Young Carlo (Jacopo Mariani) from DEEP RED

Carlo falls on this list due to his "deer in the headlights" look and his really bad knee socks and shoes. What kind of parent dresses a kid like that?  I don't care if it's Christmas.  I don't care if it's Italy and that's the fashion.  I don't care if it's 1975.  It's obvious it made the child a cold-blooded killer.  (Well, that and seeing his mother stab his father to death probably didn't help.)  But this kid, combined with that godforsaken lullaby....ugh.

Robbie Freehling (Oliver Robins) from POLTERGEIST

I can't really say why I dislike Robbie so damn much.  The kid just gets under my skin. I wanted that creepy-ass clown to kill him, I really did.  Actually I hated the whole damn family, with the exception of little Carol Anne of course.  Probably why Poltergeist has never made it high on any of my must-see lists.  Robbie is definitely the biggest reason though, and I really thought he'd bite it when the demon tree came through the window.  Alas, it was not meant to be.

 Tad Trenton (Danny Pintauro) from CUJO

 Oh Tad....you really piss me off with your whining about your "monster words" and your relentless screaming in the car.   You're such a goober.  Oblivious to the fact that his mommy and daddy's marriage is on the rocks, all he cares about is making sure the monster under the bed or in the closet doesn't get him.  I know I shouldn't be so hard on the little chap, but when he starts that non-stop wailing in the car when his mom is trying to get him calmed down, I am just praying that the St. Bernard breaks through the glass. Sorry.

Anne Stewart (Alakina Mann)  from THE OTHERS

What a mouthy, disrespectful little brat!  She didn't need a time out, she needed an ass whooping.  Taken to drawing ghastly pictures of little kids and old women that don't really exist (or do they?) and smarting back to her mother at every turn, Anne is not the poster child for good behavior.  She makes fun of her little brother and teases him relentlessly.  She questions the Bible lessons her mother teaches her, refuses to eat,  and sneaks out of the house to run away.  Granted, her mother should have believed her when she said she saw ghosts....but this kid's rotten manners and lack of courtesy are unforgivable.

Ellie Creed (Blaze Berdahl) from PET SEMATARY

 Ellie Creed (Blaze Berdahl) from Pet Sematary. Another whining little girl I can't tolerate.  What makes it worse is that sadly, the young actress that portrays her just really wasn't that good.  She needs to take lessons from Alakina Mann (above, from The Others) who, while her character was very annoying, was an excellent little actress.  Here, we have Ellie gushing about Gage one minute then fake crying the next when he is run over on the road. Most awful was her nightmares when she "saw" the ghost of Victor Pascow.  Her wailing and stuttering was so fake - really tough to take.  What's worse - Berdahl had a twin that acted in the film as well, meaning there were TWO really poor actresses in the role. Ugh.

Aidan Keller (David Dorfman) from THE RING

 Sometimes, kids are just too creepy to like, as in the case of Aidan from The Ring and The Ring Two.  Far too wise for his years, Aidan takes care of his mother more than she does of him, and indicates the level of respect he has for her by calling her Rachel instead of Mom. He draws terrifying pictures at school and watches that ominous video tape, both throwing Mom into a panic. But he's at his most eerie when discussing Samara.  Aidan knows Samara is evil, and even though Mom and Dad solve the mystery and give her a proper burial, it's Aidan that knows that's not what Samara wants.  He knows she never sleeps. And the expression on his face is enough to send even the strongest-willed folks running.  He's no less creepy in the sequel, The Ring Two.  I just can't deal with this kid.  

Tommy Doyle (Brian Andrews)  from HALLOWEEN (1978)

 Tommy could not be more annoying - one of those little kids on the block that just can't stop talking:  Can we make popcorn? Can we make jack-o-lanterns? Can we watch monster movies?  Can we read comics? Etc, etc, etc!  He then incessantly runs around the house, screaming about the boogeyman coming to get them.  I realize he was right, but yelling and acting like an idiot is a recipe for disaster in a horror movie. Shut the hell up and go hide!  Ok, I did feel a little bad for the kid when those bullies made him fall and crack open his gigantic pumpkin, but other than that he can steer clear.  Grr!

Daeg Faerch (Michael Myers) of HALLOWEEN (2007)

While we're discussing Halloween, I couldn't resist mentioning this one. I don't like this kid.  He scares me.  I know that was what director Rob Zombie was going for, but wow. I know there is a great deal of controversy about this fresh take on the Halloween story, and let's face it - the original was scarier because that Michael looked completely harmless and innocent.  This devil's spawn looked like exactly like the type that would flatten your tires, cut your phone cord, and kill your dog just for spite.  This Michael grew up in a white-trash world with a stripper mom who thought he could do no wrong.  Everything about him screams mass murderer.  He killed animals for fun, for pete's sake, before he even thought to stab his sister. If I'm being completely honest - I hated this Michael.

Bob Boyle (Giovanni Frezzi) from THE HOUSE BY THE CEMETERY

  It's entirely possible that Giovanni Frezzi is the worst child actor of his generation.  And while I realize sometimes things are lost in translation in Italian horror movies, I don't think the language barrier is the reason that Bob is such a horrendous character.  Everything about his character is awful, even though the entire film winds around what happens to HIM.  He is essentially the lead character and yet...he's so bad it's almost funny. The dubbing on some versions is SO bad - Bob sounds like a little girl instead of a boy. Not that that would make a damn bit of difference.  If you have an affinity for "B" horror like I do, you can overlook the astoundingly bad acting in the film (because let's face it, it's not just Bob that sucks) and enjoy this Fulci classic.  But no one could ever force me to like Bob...just ain't gonna happen.

Festival Of Fear: Day 13: The List: Eleven Haunted Scottish Castles

If I were able to travel anywhere in the world, I'd most like to see the United Kingdom, in particular Scotland and Northern Ireland due to both my own heritage and my hubby's.  I'm also addicted to the Starz network series Outlander, and am fascinated by the Highlander history and most especially all the lovely castles.

But most of these castles have a violent past that creates a picture of haunted malevolence. And that, my friends, is why we're here today.

While we won't be hitting on Glamis Castle (because I already wrote about it back in 2012, as part of another haunted castle post, there are loads of castles in Scotland - plenty of strongholds to feature!

Many of these hauntings feature a "grey lady", a spectre that most likely met a violent death and refuses to leave the castle.  And due to Scotland's violent history of battles and uprisings in the search for independence, there are also countless stories of soldiers meeting horrific untimely deaths.  This makes for an extra-haunted country....

Eilean Donan Castle, Dornie, Scottish Highlands

Founded in the 13th century on a small tidal island where 3 lochs meet, this castle was partially destroyed during a Jacobite rising in 1719 but was restored in the early 1900's.  Clan Mackenzie and Clan Macrae both claimed this beauty as their home. It is supposedly haunted by the ghost of a Spanish soldier who lost his life during the Jacobite battle - he is oft seen near the castle gift shop, holding his head. Another ghost is called Lady Mary, and she haunts one of the bedrooms but there is little information as to why.

Inveraray Castle 

This beautiful castle in Western Scotland is the ancestral home to the chief of Clan Campbell and has been since 1746.  Ghostly legends here include a haunted galleon that when seen sailing up the adjacent loch foretells the death of a Clan chieftain, a harpist who had been hung for stealing sordid looks at the Duke's lady of the house, and the ghosts of a Highland battle have been seen in the sky over the castle on several occasions. Of note: one of the Christmas episodes of Downton Abbey was filmed at this picturesque location.

Stirling Castle, Stirling

 Surrounded by cliffs on three sides, Stirling Castle was one of the most important strongholds in Scotland and has been the site for the coronations of several kings and queens, including the infamous Mary, Queen of Scots. The Green Lady is the most famous presence here, and is presumed to be the servant of Mary. When a fire broke out in Mary's bedchamber, the servant saved Mary's life but lost her own in the process.  Also frequently seen is the Highlander ghost, a spectre dressed in full Highlander garb who is often mistaken for a tour guide by soon-to-be-surprised guests.

Auchen Castle, Dumfries & Galloway, Scotland 

 An absolutely stunning example of medieval architecture, Auchen castle is currently used for weddings and is highly sought out for such events.  But it is haunted by the unidentified ghost of a small child often seen running up and down the halls, mostly in the morning hours.

Brodick Castle, Isle of Arran

 Thought to have had an old Viking fort on the grounds, Brodick Castle is haunted by several ghosts, one of which is the Grey Lady.  Another servant destined to haunt their charge, she drowned herself on the grounds after being spurned by a captain of the guard.  Another spin on the Grey Lady has her a victim of the plague, forced to live out her final days in the castle dungeon. This castle also holds another prophetic legend - it is told a stag is said to appear near the edge of the grounds when one of the chiefs of Clan Hamilton is about to die.

Castle Fraser, Aberdeenshire 

Started in 1574, this beauty was the stronghold of the Fraser clan for centuries.  Its most interesting ghostly legend tells the tale of a princess that was murdered and then dragged down several flights of castle stairs, leaving a trail of blood that could not be washed away.  The stains remained until they were covered over by wood to disguise the bloodshed. Eerie piano music is often heard at night and many visitors claim to have seen the woman walking the halls of the castle.

Delgatie Castle, Turriff 

 Dating to 1030, Delgatie has the distinction of being so haunted that a minister had to be called to perform an exorcism.  Apparently a Hays family member had a dream about someone being buried behind a wall. This wall was excavated and sure enough, a skeleton was found. Soon after, the castle was relentlessly haunted by what appeared to be the ghost of a monk. There were also several reports of ghosts by soldiers stationed at the castle during WWII - even enough to make the entire unit flee in the dead of night.

Fyvie Castle, near Turiff, Aberdeenshire

 In the 13th century a woman known as Lady Meldrum died and her body was placed in a sealed room, never to be disturbed, at her request. Unfortunately in the early 1920's, a skeleton was discovered when the castle was being renovated. The remains were interred in the cemetery on the grounds.  This is when the hauntings started.  They became so bad that the castle's Laird, having researched the history of the keep, had the skeleton sealed back up into a room in the castle, causing the hauntings to cease.

Craigievar Castle, Aberdeenshire

The pinkish hue of Craigievar may make it look like a fairy tale castle, but its reputation for being haunted is more in tune with the many gargoyles that line its turrets.  The Blue Room boasts the most talk of supernatural occurrences, with plummeting temperatures, ghostly music, dark figures in corners, and disembodied footsteps.  Legend has it that one of the Gordon clan fell through a window in the Blue Room to his death.  Apparently he's never left.

Dunrobin Castle, Sutherland

 The ghost at Dunrobin is a classic lover's tale of woe.  Margaret, the daughter of the 14h Earl of Sutherland, was in love with a boy her father found unbefitting of someone of her stature and royalty.  So he locked her in one of the attics.  Margaret and her servant devised a plan for her to escape her prison, but it involved climbing down a rope from high in the castle to her lover waiting below.  Her father arrived just in time to frighten her and make her lose grip on the rope, falling to her death below. It's said you can still her cry for her lost love.

Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh

 Standing high at the top of Edinburgh's Old Town, this impressive fortress is built upon an extinct volcano and dates back to the Iron Age. It boasts an extensive military history but also claims to be one of the most haunted locations in all of the UK. One of the ghosts is a bagpiper who was sent into the vast series of tunnels running under the castle to explore. When the bagpipes stopped, the haunting started.  Word is you can still hear the pipes, even from inside the castle, as the ghost wanders...lost in the underground. There is also a ghostly drummer boy and countless other restless spirits who lost their lives as prisoners within the many dungeons of the castle.

Festival Of Fear: Day 6 ~ The List: Phone Horror...Don't Call Us, We'll Call You

Phone horror is plentiful.  Many a filmmaker has used the telephone as a tactic for scaring the pants of a terrified victim (and us!)  There are dozens and dozens of films that employ this plot scheme.

Here are some of Fascination with Fear's favorites: 

WHEN A STRANGER CALLS - By far my favorite has to be this gem from 1979.  The first fifteen minutes are so tense, soooo suspenseful, that when I first saw it at age 13, I wasn't sure I'd be able to continue babysitting. The plot is entirely simple yet completely effective.  Jill Johnson (Carol Kane) is babysitting for a local doctor and settles in to get some homework done when the phone rings.  "Have you checked the children?"  And so begins an impressively chilling bit of film-making that is hard to top in the 'edge of your seat' category. The stranger calls over and over until Jill is frightened enough to call the police, who then put a trace on the call. In a jaw-dropping revelation, Jill finds out (spoiler alert) the creep is calling from inside the house. Anything negative that can be said about the last 2/3 of the film (which sort of turns into an extended episode of Criminal Minds) is brushed away by that riveting first act.

BLACK CHRISTMAS (1974) - Another of the "caller is inside the house" films, Black Christmas has the distinction of being one of the first original slasher films.  A college sorority house is plagued with obscene phone calls of the moaning variety, until one of the sisters (Margot Kidder) offends the caller by teasing him so he announces "I'm going to kill you!".  Which isn't exactly a lie.  The phone calls continue, bothering in particular Jess Bradford (Olivia Hussey), who begins to suspect her boyfriend of the pranks. As is the modus operandi in slasher films, victims begin to die off, all as the mysterious caller continues his relentless harassment.

THE CALL (2013) - Halle Berry stars in this unexpectedly effective thriller.  Berry stars as Jordan Turner, a seasoned 911 operator at an emergency hub for the LAPD.  After a young teenager dies as a inadvertent error on her watch, Jordan resigns herself to training - until another young woman needs her help. Casey Welson (Abigail Breslin) has been abducted and forced into the trunk of the perpetrator's car.  This leads to an exciting cat and mouse game in which Jordan seeks to help Casey by talking to her on the phone - which Casey just happens to have in the trunk with her. 

THE CALLER (2011) - In the same vein as the notable Twilight Zone episode, Night Call, this film has Mary Kee (Rachelle Lefevre) setting up house in her own apartment after a bad breakup. She is surprised to find an old rotary phone left behind, and even more surprised when it rings.  She picks up and begins to chat with an elderly woman, Rose, who claims to be calling from the past.  At first the calls seem harmless - maybe someone playing a prank - but then they escalate into disturbing and even threatening conversations. When she tries to break off contact with the woman, things turn deadly.  A decidedly decent film that definitely will have you throwing any old rotary phone out in your neighbor's yard sale.

SCREAM (1996) - "What's your favorite scary movie?"  The movie that started a trend of hip, self-aware horror back in the mid-90's, Scream had Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) being phone-stalked by a killer bent on revenge and looney enough to go through with it.  What seems like an innocent enough game at first becomes a terrifying reality when the killer promises to make good on threats like gutting someone like a fish. With her clique of overly perceptive teenage friends, Sidney doesn't let all the threats get her down, and what starts out as a phone prank turns into a serious bloodbath before it's all over.

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978) - Some films only have a few moments of phone time but they make an astounding impression on the entire plot.  When Matthew Bennell (Donald Sutherland) realizes his town is being overrun by pod-people, he anonymously calls the federal government to report the situation to report it.  They reply by calling him by name and telling him not to worry.  Matthew demands to know how they knew his name, because he never told them who he was, but the phone line goes dead.  Like I said - small moment, big impact.

CELLULAR (2004) - In this implausible but very watchable thriller, Jessica Martin (Kim Basinger) is accosted by thugs in her house who kidnap her and lock her in the attic of the safe house they are using.  When she is caught trying to use an old rotary phone, the head thug (Jason Statham) crushes it, leaving her helpless.  But she isn't stupid, and manages to put the wires of the phone together and call a random number, which happens to be Ryan Hewitt's (Chris Evans) cell phone.  From there, Ryan attempts to help Jessica find out where she is and why she is being held captive.  It's a fairly frantic film, as unbelievable as it may be.

PHONE BOOTH (2002) Another psychological thriller, this one puts Stu Shepard (Colin Farrell) in a city phone booth and pits him against a Jigsaw-esque maniac (Keifer Sutherland) who demands that Stu come clean about his sins.  Somehow, the caller has discovered that Stu is cheating on his wife and needs to tell her or the caller will kill her - or the woman he is cheating with.  Another white-knuckle drama with elements of horror.  And who doesn't want to look at Colin Farrell stuck in a phone booth for 90 minutes?

A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET - Just a small ode to the funny man himself.  Couldn't leave Freddy off the list.  When Nancy ( Heather Langenkamp,) tries to call Glen (Johnny Depp) to warn him not to fall asleep, Freddy (Robert Englund)  has already dispatched of Nancy's boyfriend via bloody tornado-bed.  Freddy just can't help getting his kicks and when Nancy is waiting for the call to go through, Freddy slips her some tongue and says "I'm your boyfriend now, Nancy".
Classic Fred.

HALLOWEEN (1978) - Speaking of small moment, big impact... Halloween has a few moments of unfriendly phone banter that turns out pretty poorly. For one, when Lynda (P.J. Soles) calls to check in with Laurie (Jamie Lee Curtis), Laurie thinks it's Annie "fooling around again", but it's really Michael, choking Lynda to death with the phone cord.  Then later when Laurie picks up the phone at a different time, it's once again Michael.  But he's a man of few (read: no) words, and just does a little heavy breathing.  Creepy.

THE WALKING DEAD - Poor Rick.  After losing his wife Lori, everything went from bad to worse. Being at the breaking point does something to someone.  What it did to Rick (Andrew Lincoln) was make him hallucinate like hell. When he receives several random phone calls from "beyond" on an old disconnected rotary phone at the prison, he seems to know the people that are on the other end of the line, and in fact believes the final call is Lori (Sarah Wayne Callies) calling him. Did she just want to try to get through to him to move on with his life - to stop living in the past and live in the now, since he has a son and newborn daughter to live for?  That whole episode was like a page from The Twilight Zone.

976-EVIL (1989) - Whoa, hold the phone! It's Satan on the line.  This ridiculous flick has two teens using the aforementioned number to get their fortunes told.  But it's really the devil in disguise, and he is using the exchange to try to get people to turn to the dark side.  One of the boys (Stephen Geoffreys) falls under the spell of the dastardly demon and seeks revenge on all the kids who bullied him at school.  But as there always is, a price will need to be paid for the devil's help.  Not a whole lot more to say about this stinker.

LOST HIGHWAY (1997) - David Lynch is such a weirdo.  But in a great way!  In perhaps the creepiest film on the list, there is really one key scene in Lost Highway that is phone-related.  But it's a doozy.  Fred Madison (Bill Pullman) has been having a pretty bizarre week already, but when he attends a party of a friend, he is approached by a man (Robert Blake) who tells him he is at Fred's house as they speak.  No, he means he is ACTUALLY at Fred's house - even though he is standing right in front of him.  He tells Fred to call home, and when he does, the man answers the phone, indicating that he is one and the same as the man in front of him.  It's a total trip, to be sure....but hey - that's the beauty of David Lynch.

DIAL M FOR MURDER (1954) - I love Hitchcock, as most know, and this is another great thriller from the master.  Margot (Grace Kelly) and Tony (Ray Milland) are married, but not happily.  Margot had a secret affair with Mark (Robert Cummings), but she doesn't realize Tony has found out and is planning to murder her because of it.  He hires a man to kill her and they devise a scheme in which Tony will call Margot at a specific time so that she goes to the phone, at which time the killer will do the deed and make it looks like a burglar.  Unfortunately Tony's watch stops and he is late calling, which turns the entire plot upside down. Again, one key scene with a phone but pertinent to the entire story.

BLACK SABBATH ( I tre volti della paura, 1963) - This anthology's segment, The Telephone, is a great example of our subject. Rosy (Michele Mercier) is a French hooker who lives in a basement apartment.  After work one night she gets a series of threatening phone calls, apparently from her ex pimp, Frank, a convict just released from prison and hell-bent on revenge because it is her testimony that put him away. She calls her friend Mary (Lydia Alfonsi), who she has been fighting with but she needs the company.  Alas, the phone calls continue and Mary gives Rosy a knife to take to bed with her in case of trouble.  Which comes in heaps and bounds when Frank does break in...and kills Mary by accident.  Whoops.

ONE MISSED CALL (2003) - Let's just skip right over the 2008 redux and stick with the Japanese original directed by Takashi Miike. Yoko (Anna Nagata) receives a creepy voice-mail that turns out to be herself - her own phone number, calling from a few days in the future. Yumi (Kou Shibasaki) is then told the story by her friend and listens in fear a few days later as she hears Yoko being killed while Yumi listens to it happen on the phone. This film is often criticized for being unoriginal, and it in in fact rather lame, but you can't deny it's creepy to hear yourself scream bloody murder on a voice-mail and then have it turn out to happen exactly that way just a few short days in the future.....

THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES (2002) - One of the actual prophecies depicted in the film is when a journalist (Richard Gere) who is investigating the mysterious "Mothman" in the small town of Point Pleasant (home of said Mothman, who is told to predict great tragedy), gets a series of creepy and supernatural phone calls in his hotel room from an unknown source. One of these calls claims that there will be a great tragedy involving the Silver Bridge.  In fact, this was true - 46 people died in real life at the Silver Bridge accident.

PSYCHO 2 (1983) - Being the huge Norman Bates fan I am, this was an easy pick. Norman is released 22 years after his committal to the psycho mental hospital for the poisoning of this mother and subsequent murders of several people in his mother's house.  He's doing well, and even meets a friend, Mary (Meg Tilly), at the diner where he has secured a job.  But soon, Norman starts getting phone calls from his dead mother.  At first he balks, brushing it off, but then he begins to think that all is not well....Mother has returned and is in full "mother-mode", trying to influence poor Norman and pull him back to the dark side. 

THE RING (2002) - I chose the American remake of this one because simply put, I like it better.  This phone horror means business.  Here's the deal: watch the tape, get a phone call right after, die in 7 days. Easy peasy.  Rachel  (Naomi Watts) is investigating the death of her niece when she discovers there is a video tape made that if you watch it you die in 7 days.  The call of doom, if you will.  Well, little Samara didn't want anyone to forget about her - she wanted everyone to know how long it took her to die in that cold, dank well.  One of my favorite movies, let alone because of the phone!  And you can't get out of it...that damn curse will just leave you a message on your machine if you try to balk.