15 horror movies...baby.

apparently i'm supposed to compile a list of 15 horror movies that changed my life and tag 15 friends to do the same. so says adam.
call me a sheep, but i pretty much do what adam tells me to do.
-and you should, too.
he IS pretty evil, after all....

King Kong bet you didn't see that one coming. when i was little we used to watch this movie at my grandparents house. though today you won't find me sitting around watching and re-watching a giant clay gorilla terrorize fay wray, it likely planted a seed of love for monster movies.

stephan kings night shift collection: disciples of the crow/the night waiter i don't even remember what these movies are about. my grandpa loved horror movies, and his house is where my sister and i first for a taste of the good stuff. sometimes he would be watching a particularly scary/gory film and we would choose to go play in another room. sometimes not. this little two-film collection is one we would watch from time to time. too bad its not available on dvd. i'd like to watch them again. i'm sure they're horrible. i really don't care much for stephan king.

hocus pocus  i know what you're snickering...it's not a real horror movie. but i adore it now just as much as i did when i was 12. it's spooky, fun, and has doug jones as an lovable zombie. what more could you ask for in a disney movie? (-right, hidden penises. you've got little mermaid for that.)
i indulge in this little flick when i am sad, sick or just want to feel a little bit better about life. i'll probably watch it today, as a matter of fact....

monster squad another one...i loved this movie as a kid. i love this movie today. i really like the german armadillos. that was a nice touch.
are you starting to see how i ended up this way? these movies were my childhood sustenance. that and the last unicorn, labyrinth and dark crystal, which are all pretty weird and sorta fucked up.

horror seemed to stick with me, and as i got older i just kept watching, renting totally random horror movies, buying totally random cheap horror movies when i could find them...what follows are my favorites today

nosferatu i love this movie. i think it's still just as spooky today as it was 88 years ago. it's one of those things that can  never be improved upon. i adore classic horror. i could accurately be tattooed with "can be seduced with black and white horror".  i have volumes of old horror movies,  and i think this is the crown jewel. it's perfection.


pumpkinhead  i think pumpkinhead is the most adorable little thing! (until he starts looking like lance fredrickson. then he's not so cute anymore.)
i love the atmosphere, the story, woods, spooky swamp, witches cabin...the characters the monster...everything about thins little gem.
and if i could have a grand  entrance like pumpkinhead does every time he happens on the scene my life would be awesome. flashes of lightning, rattlesnake sounds, blowing leaves (even inside!) that dude brings the party.
all it took was a swish of his little tail and i was smitten. he's my little (you know, 7 foot) demonic love. *swoon*

the wolf man i watch this one over and over. lon cheney jr is heartbreaking. and gypsies are cool.
gypsies and werewolves.
kind of two of my favorite things. i just can't go wrong here.

werewolves have a special place in my black little heart. and they kind of make my loins quiver. (god that sounds gross). but seriously, aside from twilight and blood and chocolate, i can pretty much tolerate and/or enjoy any werewolf movie. i could go on and on and finish this list solely in the werewolf sub-genre, american werewolf in london, dog soldiers, (which should have made the list, anyway) the howling, even ginger snaps. i love me a wolf-beast. gimmie gimmie.

return of the living dead one of the very few zombie movies i enjoy. what fun!!! i usually crave this film (along with potatoes and nachos) after i've been doing a bit of drinking. it really hits the spot.

house by the cemetery the only fulchi i actually really like. wish i hadn't lost this little piece in "the divorce" (ha ha). everything about this one is weird. another monster. and an end quote to really make you say "huh."
"no one will ever know whether children are monsters or monsters are children." - Henry James

the abominable dr phibes - or, really, anything with vincent price. i could watch vincent price for hours and hours. and i've been known to.
i don't think i've ever seen a vincent price movie i didn't like.


bride of frankenstein what can i say? the bride is foxy and  this is a classic black and white monster movie based on one of my favorite books. like you didn't see that one coming...


night of the living dead i know, i know, everybody loves this movie. EVERYBODY.
but coming from a self-proclaimed zombie hater (oh, and i do detest zombies)and someone who doesn't really care too much for romero (*ghasp* the sacrilege!!) my love for this gateway zombie feature is a bit unusual. the moral tale and in this film is far more disturbing then droves of the undead. in both the original and the remake. i sometimes like a movie that reminds me that humans are detestable, hypocritical, loathsome creatures.
yay.

candyman when i was a kid that bloody mary thing freaked me out. candyman is the same idea.
mirrors are scary. monsters in mirrors are scary.
this movie just reminds me so much of my childhood it's almost like a warm, fuzzy childhood blanket wrapped in gore.
a gore blankie. awww...

paranormal activity this movie is the only one i have seen in ages that actually scared me. shadows, objects moving... i like the fact that the filmmakers are banking on the viewers imagination doing the work for them. and my imagination is usually way more fucked than any movie villain, so it worked.  the original ending is light-years better than the one they tacked on for the release, so if you have the opportunity to watch it in it's original state i suggest you do so.

trick r treat was perfect. it's been a long time since i've got this excited about ANY film. it was instantly a favotite.
watching it for the first time i felt just like a little kid, all squirrely and amazed and anxious to see what was next.
it's fun, spooky, gory and fantastic. it's everything halloween is supposed to be.


i hope you all enjoyed that little jaunt into my movie psyche. see most of you in a few days, for the most awesome night of the year!

adventures in dog-land

due to obis poo-filled teenage rebellion, i am determined to exercise him more.

so today i dug out the dangerous looking contraption i have been strategically using for other useless things all these years called "the springer" (a device for your bike to enable to "safely" attach a leash) and put it on my old bike.

obi was horrified.

so we walked...yes, walked a half a block with him attached to the bike
after finally succumbing to his perceived two-wheeled death machine, i got the courage to mount the bike and ride...attached to a 70 lb pitbull.


it worked!

unlike my imagined outcome, neither of us perished in a bloody bike disaster.
not even much discomfort. (well, ob's might still have some bike trust issues.)
and obi even appeared to exert himself...a little.

actually, it was awesome.

hopefully this will cure his obsession with logs, sticks,  saplings -basically anything made out of wood, and i will, again, see vegetation in my backyard.
maybe.

but for now i have to go have a little talk with my other dog, doo, about communal etiquette and not being a nosy, complaining neighbor.
he's worse than an old lady...

drive...a love story

another drive
a waste of resources,
of time
of money
-and savior of soul.

something about twilight roads
highways
away from cities
-even tiny cities.

something about the headlights and the dark
the heater blasting on cold toes
nothing but thoughts, music and engine sounds.

something about the gentle embrace of a vehicles interior in the dark
about the delicate, powerful relationship between human and macine
the wheel,
the excellerator,
the brake...
-it's romance.

something about the starry sky up
the black road down
the silhouettes of inky trees on either side.

something about a lonely drive at twilight
to remind you what longing feels like.
and also
belonging.


so i get to think

about what was.
and how the past is with me still
like an aftertaste
always there, just beneath.

and about what is.
what happened?
somehow the fire got smothered to embers.
why? how?
 we get older, the system wears us down.
we give up
we give in
we disconnect and forget
we care too much
and not enough
     we die.

but tonight i remembered
for the first time in too too long i felt the presence of something great
something that made starry skies
inky night trees
roads
danzig
cars and me

and it felt like i could ever put to a medium for you to understand.

so all i have left to say is this:
 grab the keys.
it's not too late.