JMH's Top 10 Horror Films of 2008

Posted By : jmh314, Saturday Dec,20
Filed Under : Editorial,

As you can tell from some of our news writers posting their lists, it's about time for everyone's top ten from 2008. So I am going to join the club with PoppaScotch and others by laying out my top ten horror films of 2008. This is a year that I feel had it's disappointing sequels (Diary of the Dead, Saw V), unexpected big money makers (The Strangers, Cloverfield), bad Asian remakes (One Missed Call, Shutter), and truly awful films(Prom Night, The Happening). Despite all this, there was still plenty of great horror in the year 2008 for me to have a top ten list that I am genuinely excited about. So without further ado, here are my favorite horror films of 2008.

***EDIT: So I completely spaced and forgot one of my favorites films was a 2008 release. So when I first did my list it wasnt on here. I went back and added it in causing my #10 film to drop to an honorable mention. Seeing as I already had an honorable mention, I left that in still so I now have 2 of them. Sorry for any confusion and the mix-up but I really had to add the other film in since it's in my top 2. ***

Honorable Mention #1: WΔZ aka The Killing Gene A film that not many people have given a chance, yet I felt was one of the better Dimension Extreme films from 2008. Think law and order meets torture films. Sure it follows a similar pattern to Se7en or Saw and it sometimes tried to be more clever than it should be, but it's still a great little film that everyone should give a rent. Just bear with it when it gets confusing and rather than try and guess the twist, just let it unfold. It may not be the best butit can be an unexpectedly satisfying if you just dont dissect it too much.

Honorable Mention #2: The Wizard of Gore (remake): While not superior to the H.G. Lewis classic, I think this remake of The Wizard of Gore was a film that didn't enough credit. It was a very ambitious remake trying to add story and drama to the original films premise and it both succeeds and fails at this. It added some great character development but the story twists could be a little confusing at times. However, what really pushed this film into my top ten despite it's flaws was Crispin Glover. Crispin Glover's performance and a good amount of nudity and gore are enough to make this worth a watch but just don't expect the story to make perfect sense.

10. Dance of the Dead: A film I originally had higher on my list, the more I thought about it I still enjoyed it but it fell down my list a little. I highly enjoyed Dir. Gregg Bishop's film The Other Side, so it doesn't surprise me I had fun with this one. Just the premise alone of Zombies invading a High School prom and the date-less losers having to save everyone alone screams a fun movie. While the budget was low for some of the FX, it makes up for this by mixing in some good humor. At times it almost reminded me of Revenge of the Nerds or a John Hughes comedy with it's jokes. A film with interesting characters that made me laugh as much as it made me cheer, Dance of the Dead was truly a fun zombie comedy but I just couldn't put it any higher on my list behind some other films.

9. Kataude mashin gâru aka The Machine Girl: So originally my list included Doomsday but I thought about it and bumped it off last minute in order to get The Machine Girl on here. I was just hard pressed not to put The Machine Girl on it because I am a sucker for Asian horror, especially Japanese splatter films. Any film who's premise is a girl that gets her arm cut off only to have it replaces with a machine gun is really right up my ally. This film is just an over-the-top cheese fest, but its meant to be nothing more than that. Any film that has a machine gun toting heroine as well as ninja's, a drill-bra, chainsaws, flying guillotines, and enough blood to fill a river is bound to be entertaining in my book. Over the top FX are the highlight as is in many Japanese splatter films. I only hope that the upcoming sequel has just as many great weapons and gruesome kills to enjoy because I couldnt get enough of The Machine Girl.

8. The Cottage: Every British horror-comedy gets slapped with the title "the funniest horror film since Shaun of the Dead". While I dont think this is nearly as good as Shaun of the Dead, The Cottage is a different film as it is more of a black-comedy horror film but it really achieves some great laughs and thrills. One thing I liked is that it really starts off as just a comedy crime film and then about halfway through turns into a horror movie. Sometimes horror/comedies focus too much on the horror and the humor is lost, but I think the style that it was done in helped it succeed. The characters in The Cottage really made the film work. Casting was done well as all the characters seem to have their moments stealing the scene. Really a refreshing take on the horror/comedy drama thats well worth multiple viewings.

7. À l'intérieur aka Inside: There is no denying how twisted this French horror film truly is. It shows that money doesnt always make a difference in a film's quality if it uses it's premise and surroundings to create an emotionally draining film. It was brutal and extremely shocking, but I don't think it's story would of been effective had it been done any other way. The film was loaded with gore but the blood was done with a very creepy realism that made me cringe. I am not claustrophobic in any way yet while watching Inside I felt like I had to get out of my house. Despite the extreme story, I was happy that they didnt take the easy way out and stuck with an ending that worked rather than one to please audiences. It's nice to see that they took the intensity and left it all on the table all the way to the end.

6. Jack Brooks Monster Slayer: Jack Brooks is a film you have to be a little patient with. It really takes some time to get going but in the process helps create a character the likes of which we havent seen in a while. Once the character of Jack Brooks evolves, thats when the story takes off with a good old fashioned Monster film that is a slight throwback to the glory days of 50's monster movies. Trevor Matthews is brilliant as Jack Brooks which is good because if he wasnt so solid Robert Englund would of stole the show. Englund is great in his supporting role and really nailed all his expressions and movements. Between Matthews and Englund this is probably one of the best acted monster movies in quite some time. Break out the popcorn and just sit back and enjoy as the characters help this one unfold.

5. Repo! The Genetic Opera: While a film that will probably be an acquired taste for most, I still think this film is required viewing at least once. Forget the fact that Paris Hilton is in it and just pop this film in to see something truly different. In a time where filmmakers seem to play it safe, this film is all about being different and taking risks. Mixing Opera and Horror is something that probably cant be done by many, but Darren Lynn Bousman really found a great mix to make this film work. Sexy yet grotesque, this film told entirely through song uses it's strangeness to it's advantage by punching viewers in the stomach with something different. Filled with interesting music, crazy characters, and tons of blood, Repo! is a visceral film unlike any movie the horror genre has seen in quite some time. Even if you think this film isnt for you, do what the filmmakers did and take a risk on Repo! You might truly be surprised.

4. The Lost: While being on the festival circuit for some time, The Lost really didnt see proper release until this year. The Lost is yet another great adaptation of a Jack Ketchum novel. A film filled with brutal realism, I think it could be destined to garner a bigger cult following than it already has. It is an extremely raw and emotion filled movie but it is driven by its sociopathic lead. Ray Pye is a charismatic character that you will love to hate yet has an intriguing coolness to him. Watching Ray is like staring at the sun; you know its dangerous to look at yet you do it anyways no matter how much it hurts. Ray is so unpredictable its almost painful to watch as he is a ticking time bomb just waiting to explode. The vulnerability of his unstable character hooked me in and didnt let go all the way through the films disturbing last 20 minutes. Really a must see as it is a powerful and thought provoking film.

3. El Orfanato aka The Orphanage: I almost forgot this was a 2008 film as it was released all the way back in January. When i went to see it in theaters, I never expected it to be as good as it was. A good mix of thrills and emotion help drive this film to be one of the creepier films I have ever seen. Everything in this film works together, from the beautiful cinematography, to the haunting score, and the amazing script. I thought it was going to be very cliched filled and rely on "pop out" moments to scare people. While there are some moments of this, it is a film that relies on it's dark atmospheric build-up like many classics in the past. I was on edge waiting for something to happen because the film was built around it's tension and grim ambiance. Too many films ditch the atmosphere for cheap thrills and I applaud The Orphanage for staying an old-fashioned ghost story built around building the trepidation of it's audience.

2. Spiral: While I really enjoyed Adam Green's film Hatchet in 2007, I was more interested to see how his Hitchcockian thriller Spiral was going to be because I am a sucker for a great thriller. Fortunately I was rewarded with Sprial because its an extraordinary work of storytelling that hasnt been seen in a horror/thriller in a long time. The story was very raw and emotional, filled with plenty of great twists and turns that keep me on the edge of my seat. The acting was top notch as the actors got me emotionally invested in each character which helped keep me further glued to the storyline. If you want high levels of action and gore, this film is not for you as it is a slow burn that builds up steam as it goes along. However, it was a great reminder to me that horror films dont need to be "in your face" to be great. From beginning to end this film is an intricate puzzle, each piece fitting in perfectly inorder to provide a rewarding finished product. Spiral took a chance at stepping outside the horror norm and succeeds in every possible way.

1. Otis: While probably not the most technically sound film on this list, I enjoyed it way too much for it not to be my #1 film of 2008. The film is dark yet funny, creepy yet touching. The beginning half is almost like your standard kidnapping horror film and the second half spirals into a tale of togetherness and family....revenge. The characters drive this film to all it's success. Otis is a creepy, disgusting, psychotic pervert yet at the same time I felt a little sorry for him. You can tell all he wants is true love, it's just too bad his mind went off the deep end in his methods to finding the perfect prom date. His victim Riley Lawson isnt anything special, but her family that is hellbent on revenge is intense in their pursuits yet downright hilarious in how they execute their plans. Maybe the new term should be the family that slays together stays together because in the face of tragedy this is what brought the Lawson's together. And what could make this over the top story even better? A great classic rock score to set the perfect mood. Good humor, great performances, and a rockin soundtrack land Otis as my favorite horror film of 2008.

So there you have it, my top ten favorite horror films from 2008 plus an honorable mention that I think some of you should give a try. While every year has it's ups and downs with releases, I was glad to find more than ten enjoyable films to have to whittle my list down from. Despite 2009 looking like the year of the remake (Friday the 13th, My Bloody Valentine, A Tale of Two Sisters, The Wolfman...etc) I have hope that we will get enough smaller quality films that may just shock and surprise us. Hopefully thats the case next year and I will have to again whittle down a good crop of films to my ten favorites of the year.

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