Number 3:
Oculus
Staring Karen Gillan as Kaylie Russell and Brenton Thwaites as Tim
Russell, this film takes the question about what’s lurking behind you whilst
you’re looking at yourself in the mirror and runs with it, hitting the ground
running.
The film starts off with Kaylie picking up her brother, Tim from a
mental hospital who was sent their after being convicted for murder, she does
everything she can to prove that he didn’t do it by proving that a mirror containing
a supernatural phenomenon committed the murder. As the film progresses, it
cleverly jumps between present day and the past. Their father buys a mirror and
puts it in his study after moving into their new home. Gradually, he starts to
act weirdly, and soon he starts taking it out on his wife and children. The
problem is, the supernatural phenomenon has also gotten hold of his wife as
well, and who also starts attacking her children. In present day, the mirror
comes back with a vengeance, ready to finish the job it started. The thing is,
you see what it wants you to see.
What stands out in this film above all else is how cryptic it is
with giving away the answer. Because the mirror sees what it wants you to see,
it plays the story out in such a way that you have to question whether it is
the people who are actually going insane, or the mirror is truly haunted. You
simply do not know. And that’s where the horror comes from. Instead of being
given the answers at the end of the film, you’re left with two possible
outcomes that no matter what one you decide upon, the film will make total
sense.
Number 2:
Insidious 2
This is a direct continuation from the last film, Insidious, and I
have to say that this isn’t at all a bad sequel. You do have to watch the first
one first if you want this one to make sense, though, but being a sequel, you
probably would have watched the first one already.
In the first film, Josh and Renai Lambert’s (Patrick Wilson and
Rose Byrne) son, Dalton (Ty Simpkins) have defeated the evil spirits once and
for all… or so they believe they have. It turns out that the evil spirits are
no so easily beaten. They have come back to claim what is theirs and they won’t
stop until they have it. In the previous film, you are given certain questions,
and so you would expect them to be answered in the sequel, and they are. What
you don’t expect are the actual answers to those questions. They completely
turn the narrative upside down, revealing twists and turns and concluding any
continuity they have.
What I like about this film is the continuity. If you have watched
the first film, then you would know the second is on point all the way. The
script writers made sure they didn’t get anything wrong. Once you’ve gotten
passed all the horror, you will see a very clever story underneath. The horror
only amplifies that story that much more.
Number 1:
It Follows
This is my favourite horror film because of how intense it is. The
tension is incredibly high throughout. You’re sitting on the edge of your seat,
knowing that whatever is following them is going to pop up at any minute, but
you have no idea when or where.
The film starts off with Jay (Maika Monroe) going to see a film
with her new boyfriend Hugh (Jake Weary). Just before the film, they play a game
of which ends up with Jay saying that she cannot see the woman who Hugh is point
out. This makes Hugh realise something and asks if they can leave. Later, the
two engage in their car. Afterwards, Hugh knocks out Jay with Chloroform and
when she wakes up she’s tied to a wheelchair. Hugh explains that he has only
done this to prove that what is now following her is real. When Jay notices a
woman walking slowly towards her, she begins to scream and try to escape. Hugh
explains that after their sexual encounter in the car, Hugh has passed on the
curse to Jay. The curse in question is: Wherever Jar goes, “It” will follow. It
won’t run, and it most definitely won’t stop coming. All you can do is get as
far away as you can so it will take a long while before it reaches you.
As I said before, this film relies on tension. The supernatural
force known as “It” isn’t in the film all that long compared to most other supernatural
forces in horror films, but it doesn’t need to be because you know that it is
always there, or rather it is always coming towards the main character. It can
pop up in the background at any time, and when it does, it can blend it. For
you see, it can look like someone you know or a stranger in a crowd. When it is
a stranger in a crowd, the director has some fun with making you watch the
background to see if you can see it coming towards them without their
knowledge. Like most horror films where the foreground is always the most important,
in this film, the background is just as important as everything else. In fact,
the background is almost an entire different story compared to that of the
foreground, because you are looking out for that one person who is walking towards
them.
Even when you’ve seen it many times over, and you know what’s going
to happen when, you still can’t help but watch the background just in case you’ve
missed “It” at any point during your previous sittings.
It’s not often I say this, but I truly do love this horror film.
Thanks for reading
Antony Hudson
(TonyHadNouns)
My book, Sector 22: Zoey, is now available on Amazon, eBay, and SkyCat Publications' website:
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Ask me anything at:
ahudsonpresents@live.co.uk
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