Best horror film of the 20s & 30s

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

Again, there are open slots for suggestions - please post any film I might have skipped that you want to vote for

I fully expect the Germans to dominate here, with maybe a slim chance for Browning or Dreyer.

Films that I didn't include but that could inspire you:

Phantom of the Opera
Destiny
The Bat
Wolf Blood
The Magician
Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde
The Unknown
London After Midnight
The Haunted Castle
The Terror
The Last Warning
Genuine
The Lodger
Maciste in Hell
The Bat Whispers
The Old Dark House
The Hound of Baskervilles
White Zombie
Dracula's Daughter
Son of Frankenstein
The Raven
Murders In the Rue Morgue
The Cat and the Canary



The previous polls are still open:

Not a lot of votes in on the 40s & 50s poll:
Best horror film of the 40s & 50s

Unless the zombies pick up speed, Psycho is running away with the 60s poll:
Best horror film of the 60s

The Exorcist and Alien are still battling for king of the 70s:
Best horror film of the 70s

The Thing lost control of the 80s with a strong comeback from The Shining:
Best horror film of the 80s

Click to read more...

 

[kihei]

Nosferatu and Vampyr--either order will do.

 

[Babe Ruth]

My opinion, original King Kong is one of the greatest movies ever made.
I consider monster movies to be a little different, or a sub-genre, of horror tho..

These are cool threads, gotta get one up for the '9os..

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

My opinion, original King Kong is one of the greatest movies ever made.
I consider monster movies to be a little different, or a sub-genre, of horror tho..

These are cool threads, gotta get one up for the '9os..

Yeah, I wanted to get the older movies done before getting into the newer stuff, figured the votes would come in a lot slower...

 

[KallioWeHardlyKnewYe]

A lot of classics here, but I went weird and voted Haxan which we watched in movie club a while back and I absolutely adored. It won't come close to winning, but I won't miss a chance to plug it.

 

[kihei]

A lot of classics here, but I went weird and voted Haxan which we watched in movie club a while back and I absolutely adored. It won't come close to winning, but I won't miss a chance to plug it.

I thought about it, too, but just couldn't pull the plug as Vampyr and Nosferatu are so visually enthralling and easily among my top 100 movies.

 

[kihei]

So VD, what are these polls telling the academic in you so far? Any preliminary conclusions?

 

[Chili]

Some of the best films made in my opinion were in the pre code era. Several great ones here, could not whittle it down to two.

Include Dracula (both the English and Spanish versions), Frankenstein, The Invisible Man, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Island of Lost Souls, The Lodger, The Mummy.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

1) Nosferatu
2) King Kong
3) Frankenstein

Same, I don't think we'll get through these 3.

 

[Osprey]

I'm happy to see The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari on the list and with a vote. Roger Ebert called it "the first true horror film," it's very surreal and it features one of the better twist endings ever, IMO. Hey, I just realized that the film's 100th anniversary is only a month away. That's pretty surreal, itself.

 

[Pranzo Oltranzista]

I'm happy to see The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari on the list and with a vote. It's probably the first true horror film, is very surreal and features one of the better twist endings ever, IMO. Hey, I just realized that the film's 100th anniversary is only a month away. That's pretty surreal, itself.

The real ancestor to the slasher/boogeyman film too. Amazing film.

 

[Osprey]

I watched Nosferatu and Vampyr last night and it was interesting how different they are. Nosferatu is all story and easy to follow, but a bit lacking in mood and style. Some of the iconic shots are striking, but too few and far between. It isn't as German Expressionist as I was expecting. In a number of ways, it felt like an American silent film. It was good, but having seen so many later Dracula adaptations made it hard to appreciate how awesome it no doubt was in 1922.

Vampyr, on the other hand, has a confusing story and very little dialogue, but is all mood and style. Many shots throughout are technically impressive, striking and/or haunting. It's more of an experimental, avante-garde film in which the visuals are more important than the story. The director even admitted that he was trying to do things that hadn't been done before. I can't say that I liked the film because I didn't understand anything about what was happening, but it sure was impressive to look at.

I would say that I preferred Nosferatu, since I appreciate substance more than style, but I couldn't help but imagine what a total masterpiece could've been created by combining the two: the storytelling of Nosferatu with the visual style of Vampyr.