PRIME CUT (1972) Lee Marvin as a hitman, Gene Hackman as a guy named Mary Ann and Sissy Spacek in her screen debut; I'm sold. This one threw me for a loop because ostensibly it's a crime/action film but it suddenly takes a sharp left turn and goes to some very unexpected and unsavory places.
BONE TOMAHAWK (2015) I owe S. Craig Zahler an apology; I went into this thinking it was going to be absolutely terrible and for that I am sorry, because boy was I wrong. I love westerns and was going through a kick of watching a dozen or more at the time of seeing this. I knew nothing about it going in and was expecting a cheap UNFORGIVEN knock off. Instead, what I got was a western-cannibal-horror film and just like with PRIME CUT, it caught me off guard and left me disoriented. It's like THE SEARCHERS meets CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST and in probably the most memorable scene, I think even throws a nod to CUT AND RUN (1984) in there at the end. I liked it so much and was so impressed by it, I haven't seen it since my initial viewing because I want to preserve the memory. All I can say is, woah, that was intense.
WARLOCK MOON (1973) A pretty good supernatural horror film which has its flaws (especially in the foreshadowing department, in 1973, apparently colleges had cannibalism classes; which now that I think about it, compared to the stuff they teach today is positively wholesome) but also has a few genuinely intense, suspenseful scenes, which, putting myself in the characters place, actually increased my heart rate. Something it also does very well is, it leaves questions about the events of the film unanswered, which in supernatural horror films especially is important.
THE BUTCHER (1979) An ex-soldier turned butcher named Paul romances a teacher in a provincial French town beset by a string of murders. This is a quiet film which has a bit of Hitchcock to it; it doesn't go in for anything hysterical and there isn't much of a mystery as to who has been doing the deed. Instead, we get a bit of a subtle character study of a man whose mind has been stretched beyond its limit and is done with life; his own and others.
THE MOTHMAN PROPHECIES (2002) In my opinion, one of the few truly scary films ever made. There is an otherworldly feeling to this film, so much mystery to it, so many unanswered questions, which is what makes it terrifying. I am still hesitant to watch it because Indrid Cold genuinely freaks me out.
Ghastly1, Thank you for these excellent Erwachsenetraumas! (Sorry, I changed your brilliant title for consistency purposes)! I’m 100 percent in agreement with you on BONE TOMAHAWK. It is such a rich, grueling experience and the cast is phenomenal.
And MOTHMAN has the same effect on me. It really gets under my skin and touches on what REALLY scares me. The book is great too. I remember loving THE BUTCHER too.
I’ve yet to see WARLOCK MOON but I own it so I’ll fix that this weekend!Thanks for the heads up!
Have not seen the others but the inclusion of Mothman and Bone Tomahawk on the list makes me want to collect 'em all.
I've extolled the virtues of The Mothman Prophecies on KT before. Scariest recitation of the word "chapstick" ever.
Ghastly – I was similarly situated with Bone Tomahawk. I was on a western bender and no idea what I was getting into.
Wow! What a list. The only one I've seen is Bone Tomahawk, and like UnK, I went into it thinking it was just a modern western. I was pleasantly surprised. I've added the others to my list of "movies to watch" based on this awesome post. Thank you!
Unk,
No problem, I'm thankful to have my stuff posted. I love Bone Tomahawk because it's a masculine, politically incorrect film in an age of the total opposite and I absolutely wasn't expecting it. I was lucky enough to have seen The Mothman Prophecies when it first came out and I've seen it several times subsequently; it hasn't lost it's power for me at all. That's how I know it's a good film. The Butcher is great, I see far too much of myself in the main character for my own comfort, lmao. I think you'll like Warlock Moon, especially if you're in the right state of mind.
Chuckles,
I've seen you talk about TMMP before and I was always behind you 100%. I love it and feel it was and is underrated/slept on/whatever. Bone Tomahawk caught me with a sucker punch and I've never been more pleased to get my ass kicked by a film.
Kiddofunk,
Very cool, I'd love to know what you think of the others once you've seen them.