Re: Favorite 3 Horror Directors
Maxwell wrote:Stuart Gordon: His horror films (Re-animator, From Beyond, Dolls, Dagon) are full of energy, black humor, and rank among my favorites. His Masters of Horror entries, The Black Cat Dreams in the Witch House, are among the best in that series. I even like some of his lesser work like The Pit and the Pendulum, Fortress, Castle Freak, and Robot Jox. Plus, I love his violent dramas Edmond, King of the Ants, and Stuck (horror fans will appreciate all 3 of these twisted films).
Dario Argento: As much as I appreciate his stylish "Animal Trilogy", it's his horror heyday that cemented him as one the most influential, oft imitated horror directors. Deep Red, Suspiria, Inferno, Tenebre, Phenomena, and Opera all exhibit his trend-setting use of lighting, outrageous camera work, and juxstaposing scenes of jarring violence and gore with beautiful sets design and scenery. While his best work is behind him, I also enjoyed The Stendhal Syndrome, Sleepless, Trauma, and The Mother of Tears (a flawed, but relentlessly violent conclusion to his 3 Mothers trilogy).
David Cronenberg: One of the most unconventional horror directors, Cronenberg's peculiar brand of "bod horror" always manages to make you uncomfortable and a bit nauseous. They Came From Within (Shivers), Rabid, The Brood (one of my favorites), Scanners, Videodrome (another favorite), The Dead Zone, The Fly (who doesn't love this one? Easily on par with Carepenter's The Thing as one of the best remakes of all time), and Dead Ringers are all winners from his heydey. His output since then has proved to be equally as interesting, violent, and disturbing with Naked Lunch, Crash (THIS flippin' movie...), eXistenZ, A History of Violence, and Eastern Promises all worthy of your consideration.
I've got to see more of Cronenbergs movies. I saw Shivers because it was showing on Comcast Fearnet and that movie is fucking awesome. Just something about the setup and the feeling of dread at that damn hotel. I have also seen Dead Zone and really love The Fly.
A lot of his stuff is hard to classify as straight ahead horror, but if you haven't seen The Brood yet, do yourself a favor... That movie freaks me out. Rabid is pretty good for a psuedo-zombie flick. Scanners and Videodrome are both really cool sci-fi flicks with moments of gore.