Today is the only Friday the 13th in 2010. This is it, the only one. It seems like I should do something appropriate to celebrate, and since Mrs. Vorhees and her enfant terrible have set this day as a horror movie holy day in our collective conscious, I thought I would recommend three little known horror movies. I wanted to pick films I recommend, and ones that the majority of people haven’t seen. I also gave myself one other limitation when I was putting the list together – all three films had to be available on Netflix’s instant download. No hunting obscure video stores or late night galleries; just click and view.
So without further ado, here’s your available viewing for Friday the 13th:
- Session 9 – One of my most frequently recommended films, I cannot say enough good about Session 9. It’s a suspenseful potboiler, rather than an over-the-top gore fest, and it gets extra points for being shot in the profoundly creepy and all-too-real Danvers State Mental Hospital. Even with David Caruso in it (pre-CSI:Miami, even), this film’s a winner.
- The Host – One of a small number of films that take the Giant Monster movie to artistic levels, South Korea’s Gwoemul manages to mix drama, satire and political commentary into a brilliant depiction of inept bureaucracy and America’s all-too-big footprint on the world. As a sidenote, the #1 giant monster-as-art film is also available for instant download, and if you haven’t seen the unedited, emotionally powerful 1954 Gojira, you owe it to yourself to watch it. There’s no Raymond Burr, and no flinching from the real impact of nature gone mad.
- Dracula: Pages from a Virgin’s Diary – With Fang-fever gripping the country, I’d be remiss without including a vampire film. I freely admit that this one’s a bit of an odd inclusion though, in that it’s as arthaus as it gets. A 21st century film, shot as a silent, complete with title cards. Modern effects are mixed in alongside some of the most classic effects from the dawn of filmmaking. Further, almost the entire cast are members of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, and ballet plays an enormous part in the depiction of the film. I adore this film for several reasons – one, it’s the first time a film really explores the underlying Racism of Dracula – fear of the mysterious easterner whose ways are not British ways. It also plays with the conventions of the story, knowing that we are all familiar with it already. It jumps around, and makes us look at the relationships in new and surprising ways.
One notable exclusion – even though it’s on Instant View, I can’t recommend the version of “Let the Right One In” that’s currently on Netflix. The American subtitling is terrible, and loses much of the understatement and nuance of that haunting, gorgeous film. If you can find the European subtitled version, by all means, you should see it, but until the change the version on Netflix, I can’t recommend it.
