Top 10 really old horror films you must watch (2/2)

"Old" still doesn't equal "boring": Part two of "Top 10 really old horror films you must watch". 

In no particular order, here are five more great old horror movies. In case you missed the first five recommendations of this list, here's part 1 of the article.

Der Student von Prag (1926)

The first cinematic incarnation of "The Student Of Prague", a story loosely based on Edgar Allen Poe's "William Wilson", was made in 1913. It's a very nice watch, with some great special effects and atmosphere, but it's a bit limited in its vocabulary. Fast forward 13 years, to this 1926 adaptation of the material, directed by Henrik Galeen: The fantastic element is toned down a little, more implied than actually shown - but every other aspect is scaled up to the max. The advancement in storytelling is nothing short of mindblowing. This "Student Of Prague" has a little bit of unexpected gore effects, some dizzying, dynamic action, fully developed Expressionism (the German kind) visuals, a rhythm alternating between lighthearted and grave, natural acting, and so on - everything you expect from an eerie, exciting, and much (much!) more recent, movie. Outstanding!

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017438/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Student_of_Prague_(1926_film)

 

L'Inferno (1911) 

From the infancy of cinematic storytelling comes "L'Inferno", directed by Francesco Bertolini, Adolfo Padovan and Giuseppe De Liguoro. Cinema had been invented only about 15 years earlier, and its roots in stage play are clearly visible in the film. It's Italy's first full length feature production, it's a bit slow, but the longer you watch it, the creepier it becomes. Once you've gotten into the "zone", and begin to see "through" the old film stock, you can fully appreciate and admire the rich mise-en-scene, with lots of infernal decor and strong silent-era make-up and overacting. There are some special effects and montages that wouldn't be possible on stage, creating some bizarre imagery, and of course all of it is Dante Alighieri's "Inferno", meaning hell, from his "Divine Comedy", resulting in an interesting, moody, spooky watching experience.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0002130/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27Inferno

Watch the full movie for free in "Streaming Kino"...

Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam (1920)

"The Golem: How He Came Into the World", directed by Paul Wegener and Carl Boese, is one of the archetypes of horror cinema. It's loosely based on the Jewish legend of the Golem, a clay statue, that is brought to life by sorcery. "The Golem" isn't the most experimental of German Expressionism films, but it's certainly expressionist enough, with the poster giving a surprisingly accurate hint at what you're about to see. It's a slicker version, more like a big scale fantasy epic, with lots of actors and large sets, and some powerful Golem action. The imagery is striking, and, from a modern viewer's perspective, might have some comic strip charm, the kind you'd see much later in movies by directors such as Sam Raimi, George A. Romero, or Peter Jackson.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0011237/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Golem:_How_He_Came_into_the_World

The Bat (1926)

Not only in Europe, also across the pond in the US of A, a powerful cinematic language was evolving during the 1920s. "The Bat", directed by Roland West, takes a good hint from the German films of the time, but creates its own, streamlined aesthetic, more reminiscent of printed graphic design, or cutout art. It's a comedy, and a classic crime story with a super-villain, robbery and murder, and it's exceptionally moody, mystical, and beautiful. "The Bat" really is a fun experience, with brilliant use of darkness, light, and camera, nice chills, and the light-footed pacing of a good Hitchcock movie.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016629/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bat_(1926_film)

Alraune (1928)

"Alraune" translates to "mandrake", but the English title of the movie is "A Daughter Of Destiny". This film doesn't scream in your face at all. (Well, it's silent.) Quite the opposite, the horror is all beneath the surface. It's in the audacity of challenging God, and what could go wrong if you play with fire. Written and directed by Henrik Galeen, based on the eponymous 1911 novel by Hanns Heinz Ewers , "Alraune" is a mesmerizing, enchanting tale of science, morale, and responsibility. The beauty and elegance of some of the imagery is unreal. The eroticism, without being even remotely comparable to today's standards, will make the male viewer, and probably also the female viewer, blush. "Alraune" is dramatic, smooth, and sultry, best watched with a glass of red wine at room temperature - but you don't play God for nothing, and it all leads to a bitter end...

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017621/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alraune_(1928_film)

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Thanks for reading!

Click here for part 1 of this article, five more films!

Streaming Kino: Jack The Ripper (1988)

One of many adaptations of the "Jack the Ripper" material, this one stands out with great acting performances, suspense, and historical accuracy.

Michael Caine and Jane Seymour star in this two-part TV mini-series, turned into one 3-hour feature film. Do not despair at the runtime, you probably won't even notice the extra 90 minutes - it's a TV-friendly production, but still a very exciting ride. Some obvious effort went into creating a reasonably accurate picture of both the crimes, and the period. It's a captivating detective story, with flashes of horror, and some interesting character development.

Watch "Jack The Ripper" (1988):

video source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cnG9XlHfFQ

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More information about "Jack The Ripper" (1988):
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095388/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_the_Ripper_(miniseries)

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Click here for all "Streaming-Kino" films/articles.

 

Streaming Kino: Assault On Precinct 13 (1976)

John Carpenter's first serious feature length movie, and a horror thriller classic.

With its nihilistic approach, violent action, and seriously creepy scenes of nightly onslaught, "Assault On Precinct 13" is a little too much horror to be just an ordinary thriller. Like a handful of other John Carpenter films, its based on an idea found in a Howard Hawks western movie, but it also takes a clue from George A. Romero's "Night Of The Living Dead" (1968). The result is an outstanding piece of eerie, terrifying atmosphere and suspense, that is easily on par with Carpenter's next movie, mega-hit "Halloween" (1978), if not superior.

Watch "Assault On Precinct 13" (1976):

video source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fbyNrdngx4

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More information about "Assault On Precinct 13" (1976):
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074156/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assault_on_Precinct_13_(1976_film)

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Click here for all "Streaming-Kino" films/articles.

Top 10 really old horror films you must watch (1/2)

"Old" doesn't equal "boring". If you think it does, you're missing out on some of the best horror movies ever. 

Movies that not only have become iconic over time, for their historical value and contribution to cinema, but are timelessly scary and exciting. 

In no particular order, here are five (=part one, link to part 2 at end of article) out of ten really old horror films you must watch:

Nosferatu - Eine Symphonie des Grauens (1922)

When speaking about horror films, "Nosferatu" has a bit of singular place in history. It's basically in the lineage of "Dracula", but changes to some elements of the story (e.g. name) put it into a different context. And director Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau managed to create some striking imagery that is unmatched to this day. Combined, "Nosferatu" is the Dracula that defies Dracula. A universe, such as Dracula's, with countless variations on the myth, was never created for "Nosferatu". It's just this singular, otherworldly nightmare put on film, that is unparalleled in its sinister aesthetic quality. The full original title translates to "A Symphony Of Horror", which is an accurate description of the movie. This Dracula doesn't beguile or enchant - he just stares into your soul, and wants to eat it.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0013442/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nosferatu (with streaming movie!)

If you like to watch "Nosferatu" make sure it's a long (>90min) version (e.g. the one on the Wikipedia page).

 

Häxan (1922)

In this quite unique production, directed by Benjamin Christensen, we get an analytic approach to the alleged phenomenon of witchcraft - "Häxan" is the Swedish word for "witches". Being a somewhat scientific document, there isn't much of a story, it just goes through some chapters exploring the material, and giving some commentary. Material, in this case, being a reference to folklore, and "Häxan" being the most expensive Swedish film production at the time. Add one to one - it's to witchcraft movies what "Saving Private Ryan" is to WWII movies. Did you ever want to see the actual devil, the one you were scared of as a very little kid? In "Häxan" you do - and then some.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0013257/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C3%A4xan (with streaming movie!)

 

Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari (1920)

Horror cinema wouldn't be the same without Dr. Caligari's infamous cabinet. Generations of filmmakers have looked at this movie as a guideline, and source of inspiration. It is basically the seed of the "psycho thriller", thus "slasher", genre, and a template for the modern script writer as well as the cinematographer. Also it's the most expressionist of German Expressionism films, almost completely dropping the ties with physical reality in its visual design. The psyche is everything, and everything is the psyche, in this creepy, pivotal masterpiece, directed by Robert Wiene.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0010323/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cabinet_of_Dr._Caligari (with streaming movie!)

 

Faust: Eine deutsche Volkssage (1926)

Another F. W. Murnau directed milestone of fantastic cinema, a drama of biblical proportions, and a stunning display of visual cinematic virtuosity. This adaptation of the classic Wolfgang von Goethe material is the "Star Wars" and "Lord of the Rings" of German Expressionism cinema. It opens with the Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse, riding through the misty clouds, looking... terrifying! And this is just the first minute of the movie. Rooted in religion and folklore, with overwhelming expressionist shapes of black and white, masterful use of composition, superimposition, and other effects, "Faust" is an array of beautiful, epic, nightmarish imagery that is guaranteed to crawl under your skin. "Faust", without a doubt, ranks among the top achievements in cinema history, and will forever do so.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016847/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faust_(1926_film) (with streaming movie!)

Kurutta Ichipeji ("A Page of Madness", 1926)

Japanese experimental psycho horror film "A Page of Madness", directed by Teinosuke Kinugasa, is interesting, beautiful, and disturbing, all at once. Naturally, it has similarities with other productions of the time, but there's also a very distinct element to. The bizarre, stylized imagery, and the sometimes dizzying, unsettling editing is unique to Japanese cinema, and is still seen today in everything from "Tetsuo" (1989) to "Ringu" (1998) and beyond. "A Page Of Madness" is a groundbreaking, mesmerizing visualization of a mind falling apart at the borders between reality and imagination.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0017048/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Page_of_Madness (with streaming movie!)

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Thanks for reading!

  Click here for part 2 of this article, five more films!

Review: Faceless (1988, Jess Franco)

An act of revenge by an unsatisfied patient is the starting point for an ever darker series of events. An all too ambitious, reckless plastic surgeon goes to work, to fix the damage that has been done, and he needs... female skin!

Jess Franco has made a good amount of very-low-budget films - but this isn't one of them, it's among his highest-budget productions. A round of good actors, some of which are well known far beyond exploitation cinema, a couple more different settings than usual in his movies, some actual dialogue, proper editing - yes, this is perfectly watchable if you like a nasty mad-scientist shocker. 

"Faceless" is a french production, but it feels a bit like an Italian movie, an offspring of 70s gialli and fumetti neri. It's a variation of the same idea that Jess Franco had already used in "The Awful Dr. Orloff" (1962). "Faceless" seems to have mostly disappeared from common horror fans' consciousness, despite the fact that it features scream-queen Caroline Munro, veteran actors Helmut Berger and Anton Diffring, and even cult-icon Telly Savalas. Maybe it's because the movie was released in 1988, a couple of years after the heyday of Italian horror cinema, maybe it's because it's a little too polished, a little too much star power for a production that would typically be watched by a niche audience - "Faceless" is a bit of an oddity among the horror films of its time. It lacks the elegance of a classic giallo, or a gothic horror film, but also doesn't fully commit to the cold realism as seen in e.g. "Maniac" (1980) or "Last House On The Left" (1972).

What it has, is a nice horror story in a metropolitan present-day setting, some good acting, and some not so good acting, beautiful women that show a lot of skin, some sexy sleaze, hints of quirky comedy, homophobia and Nazisploitation, and some strong, well made gore scenes that will make you react, and maybe stick with you for a while. (The eyes!)

It's reasonably exciting and suspenseful, albeit more due to the visible events than subtle writing or delicate timing, as seen in an Alfred Hitchcock movie. The sleaze doesn't max out, and there isn't an excessive amount of crotch shots, so in that regard "Faceless" is a little (I said a little!) more accessible than expected. 

Overall, it's clearly a Jess Franco movie, meaning you don't win an Academy Award with this kind of stuff. It's got a respectable, above average production value, compared to similar works, but it's still low-cost exploitation cinema, pulp fiction for adults.

"Faceless" is a bit of a mash-up of different styles, and varying degrees of quality. It's a shocker, it has its moments, but also sometimes it gets a little lost in an uneven tone and hiccups in pacing. If you're looking for edge-of-your-seat levels of suspense, let alone depth or nuance, you probably better look elsewhere. If you like a gory, slightly-above-average horror thriller that doesn't require 100% of your attention, you've come to the right place.

Verdict: Nasty stuff. 6/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095125/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faceless_(1988_film)

Trailer video:

video source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njDRl7egw7o

  

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Dangerous Animals (2025) trailer released!

Roughly 24 hours ago the trailer for upcoming shark-killer-thriller "Dangerous Animals", directed by Sean Byrne, was uploaded to YouTube.

After a roughly 1 minute long teaser was released about a month ago, now there's the official trailer. It's a little more than 2 minutes long, with countless edits, and flashing imagery. Does it give away too much? There are a couple of frames from a lot of different scenes in it - it remains to be seen how much more surprises, and how much suspense the full movie can offer.

Starring Hassie Harrison, Jai Courtney, Josh Heuston, "Dangerous Animals" is set to be released on June 6th 2025 in the US.

Watch "Dangerous Animals" (2025) trailer:

video source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvwfHPtjO18
Rotten Tomatoes Trailers

Streaming Kino: Riki-Oh ("Story Of Ricky", 1991)

Comic-adaptation "Riki-Oh" is a guilty pleasure that doesn't give you much time to catch your breath.

It's a cult movie, thanks to its unapologetic approach to both adapting the original material to live action film, and the on-screen violence. Where others might have changed the tone, director Lam Nai-Choi ("The Seventh Curse") chose to closely mimic the original, only with actors, latex, styrofoam, and large amounts of fake blood. 

"Riki-Oh" is a fast moving manga-style prison drama, with grotesque, funny, bizarre moments, and a lot of very brute, very gory violence. If you have a strong stomach, it's a highly entertaining watch.

Fun fact: Actors Fan Mei-sheng and Louis Fan Siu-wong, playing the master of the prison and Riki-Oh, respectively, are father and son in real life.

video source:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlRfZ8-pgGY
Alin Sun

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More information about "The Story Of Ricky" (1991):
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102293/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riki-Oh:_The_Story_of_Ricky

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Click here for all "Streaming-Kino" films/articles.

 

Review: Demoni ("Demons", 1985)

The lines between cinema and reality blur, when a mask is found that carries evil. A movie theater becomes the battleground for hordes of bloodthirsty demons invading our world!

It's a mess. It's all over the place. A helicopter. (You'll understand.) We love it so much. 

"Demoni" drops all ballast, plays no games, and goes straight for the marbles. Which, in this case, are the games. It's not about uncovering and dissecting your innermost fears - or, only if they are an unhinged, feverish, surreal, and gory nightmare, that comes at you like a train at full steam. Where in other movies the aforementioned "marbles" would correlate to the underlying suspense, the dramatic arc, or whatever emotional effect the director intends to evoke in between the peak moments, in "Demoni" there is no such thing as an "in between". When the spectacle begins, it gets wilder and wilder, and pretty much doesn't stop until the end. 

The film-in-the-film concept mixes with some colorful outside world shots, there's plenty of action and gore, a bit of sleaze and bad lifestyle, and there's a notable lack of meaningful dialogue sequences, little chances of identification with the protagonists, etc. In "Demoni" it's all about the sonic and visual impact. The heavy metal music by Saxon, Accept, and others, used in the soundtrack, might seem a little off on first sight, but it's actually somehow accurate to not only the pacing of the movie, but also the stereotype that heavy metal music is inherently the devil's work. 

This hints at a message, a loophole in which "Demoni" is the very evil that it portrays, spilling over into the real world. But that's certainly a massive over-analysis. First and foremost, "Demoni" is a mash-up of countless themes from Italian horror cinema and fumetti (comics). Gothic demons emerging, a helicopter (...), a hero with shiny muscles, some zombie-esque action, ... If you've ever seen a fumetto like e.g. Dylan Dog or Brad Barron, you get the idea. It's a lot.

And it works! There is some really awesome looking use of light and shadow, inventive and bizarre imagery, wild, scary make-up, some epic scenes of demonic onslaught, huge amounts of violence and gore, and so on, and it has a fast pace, so you don't spend much time thinking about all of the insanity.

"Demoni" is one of the most spectacular productions of 70s and 80s Italian horror cinema. Does it make sense, or even educate you? No. Does it keep you tied to the screen, asking for more? Ohyeah!

Verdict: All hell breaks loose in "Demoni"! 8/10

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089013/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demons_(1985_film) 

Trailer video:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HkHDrRa8R4

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