Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Generally, Wordless Wednesday is just that.  Wordless.
But just a few brief words to let you know this is a new feature here at Fascination with Fear.

Marie and I both love a good spooky pic, or just something that evokes an emotion of apprehension, creepiness, or outright fear.  So we've chosen to highlight pics we find on our daily perusing of the web for your enjoyment. 
A lot of blogs that feature Wordless Wednesdays are just one solitary photo.  And that's where we differ.
Most weeks will have a theme and several pics.  (But on the rare occasion that we find something powerful enough to stand alone, then so be it.)

And now...our first installment.  Let us know if you like the feature!

Sunday Bloody Sunday: The Happy Easter Edition!

 To celebrate Easter, I've found some awesome shots of some fairly disconcerting  - and bloody! - rabbits.

Enjoy!

SILENT HILL REVELATION

EASTER BUNNY BLOODBATH

NIGHT OF THE LEPUS

MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL

FATAL ATTRACTION

WATERSHIP DOWN

BUNNYMAN 2

EASTER BUNNY BLOODBATH

                                           (But my favorite creepy bunny isn't bloody at all....)

DONNIE DARKO

                                                              Have a bloody wonderful holiday!!

Roots of Horror: The Monkey's Paw

Illustration by Walt Sturrock

~by Marie Robinson

Englishman W. W. Jacobs’ literary work was mainly comedic, but he is now known nearly exclusively for his supernatural short story, “The Monkey’s Paw”. Originally published in September of 1902, it has been republished in horror anthologies, adapted for film and stage, and provided inspiration for dozens of other forms of media.

In his classic tale, the White family—which includes Mr., Mrs. and grown son, Herbert—are visited by a friend, military man, Sergeant-Major Morris. He tells the Whites of a mysterious talisman that will grant three wishes, but at a terrible expense. Sergeant-Major Morris throws the talisman, a dried monkey’s paw, into the fire, but Mr. White retrieves it before it is burned, and despite Morris’ warnings, decides to keep it and use it anyway.

Brett Simmons' 2013 film

The story is simple enough, but Jacobs’ dark and haunting delivery had rendered it timeless. Admiration for the tale was instant, and the first adaptation of the tale was in the form of a one-act play staged in London, 1903. The first film version of “The Monkey’s Paw” appeared in 1923, and since then there have been nine more films directly adapting the story—the most recent released by Chiller last year. The story has been the inspiration for a handful of television plots on popular shows such as The X-Files, Buffy, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, and The Twilight Zone which have all used the motif of a wish-granting cursed talisman.

This motif has been incorporated in a number of other films, television shows, books, video games, and comics, but perhaps my favorite version of “The Monkey’s Paw” is living legend Christopher Lee’s 2004 recording of the tale, which was done as part of the BBC’s radio series Christopher Lee’s Fireside Tales. Read the full text here (http://americanliterature.com/author/w-w-jacobs/short-story/the-monkeys-paw), or listen below… if you dare.

Sunday Bloody Sunday: Guinea Pig 2: Flowers Of Flesh & Blood

 Nasty.

Celebrating SIX Years Of Fear: Six Horror Films I've Never Seen (That Practically Everyone Else Has!)

While I have seen a ton of horror movies, there are still some out there that I haven't put my stamp of approval (or disapproval) on.  The following are six films that I have yet to experience, some of which are pretty damn popular in horror circles.  But I need to know if they are actually worth my time, so anyone who wants to weigh in, feel free....

WISHMASTER
Well, it's possible I have seen part of this.  Either that or I have just seen the main Wishmaster dude in pictures and clips.  It actually looks pretty scary.  HE actually looks pretty scary, kind of like the Creeper from Jeepers Creepers.  But am I correct in saying this guy is a demonic genie? Does he have a bottle? How is he summoned? What does he want after you make your wish, and how many wishes do you get? Does he want you to do unspeakable evil? Does he want to take your soul to hell?  (Doesn't everyone these days?) And my most burning question remains:  how the hell did this movie get three sequels?

STREET TRASH
Why doesn't this sound like a horror film?  It sounds like a movie about a gang from the wrong side of the tracks or something.  Is it a film about vagrants?  Hookers?  Homeless people? I'm confused. I understand it has a huge cult following, but I'm just not feeling it.  The movie poster does nothing for me, and to be honest it looks really stupid. I know I will offend with that comment, but someone is going to have to list this film's merits and perhaps I'll give it a go.  I do respect all your love for it though.  Horror fans are eclectic and proud. So never fear, I won't make fun of you for appreciating it.

THE STUFF
Here's another one I'm not entirely sure I haven't seen. Some of the 80's are a blur to me, and 1985 was one of those years when I did a lot of drinking after football games.  It's possible I may have subjected myself to this one at someone's sleepover, but I really can't be sure.  What is this about?  A rather ambiguous title, don't you think?  Any pics I've seen always has....well, stuff drooling out of their eyes and mouth, so I need to know just what the hell is going on before I take the plunge.  Please advise.

THE HOUSE ON THE EDGE OF THE PARK
Hmm.... David Hess.  Must contain reprehensible, misogynistic material, right?  Let me guess...he's a career criminal that abuses, rapes, and kills women. Does it have a plot? Is there a reason to watch it, other than for completeness sake?  I know it's a Deodato film, so that gives it some credibility in horror circles, correct? It's one of the video nasties on "THE LIST" so I assume there's a ton of violence. Are there different versions, like a trimmed down, less violent one that I should avoid due to continuity problems? Do I really need to see this? Does it bring anything new to the table at all?  Or is it just a free-for-all kill-a-thon that I'd do well to avoid?

C.H.U.D.
I've heard of this one, many times. I always thought it was a comedy.  Is it?  I'm not crazy about comedy in horror. (Unless it's as good as say, Shaun of the Dead or Young Frankenstein). When I found out it stands for "Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dweller", I knew it had to be ridiculous.  So I just never saw it. Avoided it like the plague.  Still have no desire to see it, even though it has some decent stars in it.  Am I making a mistake here? What actually happens?  How are these "dwellers" released from underground?  Is it an apocalyptic movie? Where do the CHUDs come from? Again, I'm just not feeling it.

KILLER CLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE
Yeah, clowns just don't do it for me. Pennywise from IT scared me well enough, and of course the Poltergeist clown episode scarred me for life.  But sitting through an entire movie (because I can't call something with killer clowns in it a "film") full of the jolly - yet demented and murderous - idiots just isn't my idea of fun.  Can someone convince me otherwise? Why are these clowns in space?  Why does it take place in space, or doesn't it? Are the clowns intimidating? I'm guessing no, but perhaps I've got this all wrong. I'm afraid it's going to take a lot of convincing for me to waste my time with this one.

Celebrating SIX Years Of Fear: Six Favorite Scenes In Horror

Not much of an introduction is needed here, these are simply six of my most favorite scenes in horror. Scenes that made my heart stop, skin crawl, or my anxiety level reach outer space.

Jurassic Park was a popcorn movie, no doubt. A summer blockbuster of the highest degree. But it was also a damn scary flick in places, none more than this classic scene of heart-thumping fear.





 Insidious was an uneven film at best for me, but there is no denying that this scene in which a creepy ghost dances to Tiny Tim's "Tiptoe Through the Tulips" has a very unsettling feel to it.  Even more so when you watch this particular clip.




I was probably twelve or thirteen when I saw The Shining for the first time, and while seeing someone naked in a movie may have been a relatively new thing, I wasn't prepared when she morphed into a rotting old woman. Gets me every time!

 



The Exorcist is a powerful film filled with disturbing imagery and famous scenes. My favorite is a subtle few moments when Father Karras is having a dream about his now-deceased mother. We get flashes of Pazuzu, sure... but more unsettling to me is Karras's mother, ascending out of the subway, only to turn and retreat back down. All the while pleading....Dimmy!




Dark Skies is a relatively new film with the age-old plot about an alien invasion. I'm not as big of a sci-fi fan as I am straight horror, but to be honest this was one of the most effective flicks I've seen in a while. And I'm not much for jump-scares, but this one totally got me.




The Woman in Black (1989) will forever be in my top three all-time favorites (Jaws, Psycho). It evokes such a sense of dread, I've never seen anything quite like it. This scene sent chills up my spine the first time i saw it, and has chilled me to the bone in every subsequent viewing. This is how to do atmosphere in horror, folks.

Celebrating SIX Years Of Fear: Six Films That Made Me Stop In My Tracks

Watching a horror film should always evoke some kind of intensity. It's horror's calling card.  It's meant to make you stop and think.  Some films do this in leaps and bounds, far more than others.  These six films I've highlighted made me stop like a deer in headlights.  They are profoundly affecting.  As well as brilliantly effective.  See if you agree....

OLDBOY (2003)

An intense, effective movie like Oldboy just sticks in your head like a bad song. The first time I saw it I was stunned by how twisted and deviant it was.  If you've never seen it, you need to.  The ending will blow you away. Choi Min-Sik, (I Saw The Devil), plays Oh Dae-su, a man who - after missing his daughter's birthday due to a drinking binge - wakes up in a hotel room, alone.  He is then kept prisoner in this room for fifteen years.  FIFTEEN YEARS.  His captor is never seen and after said fifteen years, releases him on a roof top without any indication of why he imprisoned him in the first place.  Herein lies the mystery of the film. As Oh Dae-su tries to put together the pieces and discover the truth, he is taunted by his captor. It is obvious that Oh Dae-su is meant to understand eventually.  Along the way he falls in love with a young woman who helps him try to solve the puzzle and seek revenge.  The thought of losing fifteen years of your life because someone had some kind of vendetta against you is pretty damn sobering. The lengths his captor goes to make Oh Dae-su's life miserable is unheard of.  I've never seen anything like this film before or since. One of a kind and bloody brilliant.

THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999)

The first time I saw The Blair Witch Project was in the comfort of my own home.  I never saw it on the big screen as I'm not much for "hype" movies, and couldn't imagine it being everything it was made out to be. And it really isn't.  It's just three people wandering through the woods for 90 minutes. HOWEVER.  There are moments of this film that made my skin crawl.  My husband and I own a cabin in the woods, and all I could think was how similar it looked.  I've never been able to look out into the woods behind the cabin and think of anything but Blair Witch or Evil Dead.  Being lost in the woods is bad enough, but the real kicker here is the film's final moments.  It scared the hell out of me - and my husband too.  Too many people dismiss this movie, saying they "didn't get" the ending. Well those people obviously didn't pay attention earlier when the townsfolk were discussing how child killer Rustin Parr would take two children into the basement and would take make one face the corner and listen while he murdered the other child.  The final moment is Heather coming into the basement and finding Mike standing in the corner.  And then she screams and drops her camera.  Powerfully effective.  I am not easily freaked out, but it took everything I had to go down to the basement after the film was over to put my dog outside.  I thought about that film for weeks afterward.

LAKE MUNGO

Lake Mungo is one of those movies that you sit and think about for long after it's over.  Like The Blair Witch Project  before it,  the found footage style in which the film is presented makes you feel like you are watching a true story.  Especially in this film's case because it is a mockumentary. You could be watching a forensic show about a young girl being missing and it would be no more effective than this tale of fifteen year old Alice going missing at an outing with her family.  Presumed drowned, Alice is mourned by her loved ones and soon the film morphs into supernatural territory when the family begins to experience strange happenings at their home.
Interviews with Alice's family, friends, and a local psychic all help to string together the events of her apparent death, though an explanation is never fully given. You don't need gore, you don't need jump scares, and you don't need a rational explanation to create an effective and unsettling horror film. Just ask anyone associated with Lake Mungo, they'll show you how it's done. The subtlety that surrounds nearly every frame of Lake Mungo is an unnerving freight train barreling down the tracks. It's a quiet film, in fact so quiet that it's deeply disturbing.  I found myself reliving a few key scenes every time I closed my eyes. To me, that's a sign of excellence in horror.  Nearly everyone who has seen this film would agree with that.

SINISTER

I'm not exactly sure what bothered me so much about Sinister. I mean, it's an effective horror film on its own merit, and the acting is above average with Ethan Hawk's presence, but it's nothing earth-shattering, plot-wise. Perhaps it's because I first saw the movie alone at the theater, I don't know.  Maybe it's the thought of living in a house where something terrible happened.  Which is what Hawke's character does, in bringing his family to live in a house where a family was hanged to death in the tree in their backyard.  Ellison (Hawke) doesn't tell his family about the murders, just brings them there to live while he writes a book about the crime.  He finds a box of 8mm films - each with titles like "Pool Party" and "BBQ" - obviously left by the former owners.  In watching them, however, they depict horrific murders instead of family gatherings. What's worse is that Ellison, in studying the films, discovers a ghoul-like demonic face seemingly watching each murder scene.  What he discovers in delving into the mystery is totally unsettling, even more than the creepy murders themselves.  After seeing this movie I couldn't wait to get out of the theater and into the daylight. Which, in turn, didn't make me feel one bit better. Go figure. 

APT PUPIL

Nazi's scare the ever-loving shit out of me.  I've always been morbidly fascinated with the horrific events of the Holocaust and wondered how in the hell the entire world let that kind of atrocity go down. In any event, Hitler and his henchmen were pure and simply evil.  And who knows evil better than Stephen King?  Based on one of his short stories, Apt Pupil takes a teen (Brad Renfro) who develops an unhealthy obsession with the Holocaust and places him in the same town as a man who may or may not be a Nazi war criminal (played to perfection by Ian McKellen).  Todd Bowden (Renfro) discovers his elderly neighbor Arthur Denker (McKellen) is almost certainly Kurt Dussander, a high-ranking SS soldier hiding out in sunny California.  Todd ends up blackmailing Denker, trading his freedom for tales of mayhem from the death camps during WWII. The two develop an uneasy friendship, and the stories of ghastly concentration camp  conditions and horrendous human tortures fill their days and nights.  To make matters even more dreadful, Todd buys Arthur a duplicate of an SS uniform and forces him to wear it, which in turn helps Arthur reach deep into his memory, exposing the true horror of his previous life, which then begins to leech into his present.  Deeply disturbing, Apt Pupil made a lasting impression on me, and remains one of the most chilling films I've seen to date.

WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN (2012)

Horror films come in all different shapes and sizes. While this film would initially be thought of as a drama, there's no doubt in my mind that this film is an outright horror film.  Tilda Swinton marvelously plays the dejected mother of a seemingly loveless and obviously disturbed child. Flashbacks tell the story that from the moment the child is born, he isn't happy and does everything he can to make his mother equally as miserable.  He cries endlessly, won't play with toys, deliberately poops in his diaper, and gives his mother essentially no reason to love him.  It's unclear if Swinton's character ever wanted children, yet for all her trying to be a good mother, it ends up being no contest to Kevin's inherent psychopathic tendencies.  As a teen he is nothing less than frightening, pretending all is well when his father is around yet always on the verge of something... And that something is reprehensibly evil.  Because we are privy to the mother character constantly flashing back to a scene where she is driving to a tragedy at a high school, it's not hard to imagine what has happened, but it's the getting there that just takes your nerves and twists them until your stomach flops. From the day he was born, this child has irrevocably changed her life forever, and yet in the last scene there is still a mother's love evident.  Swinton was somehow passed over for an Academy Award for this role, but it's a tour-de-force of skill and perfection.  I don't think any film has affected me quite like this one. Terrifying.