I'm still in sick bay and attempting daytime TV rather than going directly to You Tube.
I'm watching 2012: Ice Age on Horror at the mo and I despite a lively attempt at movie making I just can't cope with the blurriness and muted silvers and greys of modern cheapo horror films.
What do they do? Smear the whole reel in vaseline and chuck the colour palette in the bin? The use of a million teenagers doesn't make up for it!
I understand that these films will be cheap for channels like Horror to buy, who tend towards a teen audience, but boy oh boy are they rubbish compared to classic B movies and Hammer horrors.
Yes, I'm an old crusty approaching 60, a baby boomer brought up on Universal monsters and Amicus anthologies, but please, show some decent stuff Horror Channel and not just once every full moon!
What do you think readers? Shall I be quiet and take another haliborange?
I agree totally. Many, many modern horror movies are derivative, formulaic and just plain dull. Doesn't stop me trying them, though - can't risk missing something good! There have always been terrible movies in all genres but, somehow, an old, rubbish horror seems far more entertaining than a new, rubbiish horror.
ReplyDeleteYou do well trying them all Paul. Some have great names like Banshee Chapter but turn out to be complete pants. Horror Channel must buy them at a large pants sale, they show so many. I could lend them my eighties VHS collection but then I'd have to guard it day and night!
DeleteI must agree that alot of the modern films shown on Horror are abysmal (SYFY is also guilty of providing us with this drivel). How does this garbage ever get funded? Dire scripts, ropey CGI ......etc
ReplyDeleteAt least they do give us a few decent films now and again. Unfortunately the best seems to be from the 60/70s (at least till the 9pm watershed). The only films I've watched on the afternoon/early evening on Horror recently are the delightful Dr Terror's House of Horrors and the 1930's versions of Dracula and Frankenstein. Please Horror Channel give us some good films - The Abominable Dr.Phibes and Dr.Phibes Rises Again havnt been on the telebox for years (yes I've got the dvds but these sort of films need to be seen by a new audience).
Classics are good. Cheepo modern pap bad.
Another kindred Timmy! Maybe me, you and Paul should start a petition! Bring classic horror to the Horror Channel!
DeleteAlas Horror and SYFY are now dumping grounds for their network owners. Once upon a time both had some semblace of independence (Syfy/SciFi whatever it was back then commissioned its own shows at one point), now its a case of "What dross from our catalogue can we put on this channel".
DeleteOh well, of to watch NOW 70s (boy does watching music vids from 50 years ago that you originally saw on TOTP make you feel old.)
Yup, SYFY's own productions are uniformly and consistently awful. They're cheap and they're boring and I've pretty much given up watching movies on the SYFY Channel. As for the Horror Channel, there must be a wealth of obscure genre movies out there, waiting to be re-discovered, that could be shown cheaply and would probably attract a whole new audience. Talking Pictures seem to manage it!
ReplyDeleteAnd I've recently been spending an unhealthy amount of time watching old episodes of '70s TOTP on YouTube...
ReplyDeleteBut I can't abide the TOTP 80's shows! Abysmal!
DeleteDon’t get me started on “Modern Horror” (or SF for that matter. Above comments reflect my feelings as well. But I appreciate your mention of the Amicus Anthologies, because we’ve just this past month been rewatching many of them. Such nostalgic fun! The House That Dripped Blood, And Now the Screaming Starts, Vault of Horror, Tales That Witness Madness, Torture Garden, all still hold up remarkably well. All were available as streaming on Amazon. Still looking for Dr Terrors House of Horrors, might have to buy the DVD to see that one again. Still need to also catch up with Tales From the Crypt and From Beyond the Grave. Did I miss any?
ReplyDeleteA fellow anthology fan! Yes, Zigg. I think you've listed the lot there. From Beyond the Grave is the only one I struggle to ever find on You Tube. Somewhere it'll be languishing in there! I'm watching a really odd occult crime flick at the mo called The Pyx. Canadian with Christopher Plummer. Not an anthology but interesting.
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