MACABRE DAILY'S OCTOBER STAFF PICKS: "NON-ENGLISH SPEAKING HORROR" MOVIES
Horror’s Hallowed Month is upon us, and we at Macabre Daily are as psyched as you are to celebrate a month entirely dedicated to Halloween and Horror! We know a lot of you are watching 31 (maybe more?) films, and often it can be hard to know which movies to watch, which ones to rewatch, and which ones to recommend to your friends.
Well, the diabolical staff at Macabre Daily have come together to bring you a theme for each week of October, and our staff recommendations to go with it! Each week in October we will announce a new theme, and that Friday we will share our recommendations.
This week’s theme is, “Non-English Speaking Horror” Movies!
Ringu/Ring (1998)
Directed by Hideo Nataka
Rich Harris on his “Non-English Speaking Horror” pick: RING may have been mercilessly parodied and/or copied in one way or another since it was first released some 24 years ago, and it may well be something of a “yeah, yeah, “The Ring”…God, what a basic bitch” choice, but fuck you. Its ability to shock and terrify is arguably as strong as, say, THE EXORCIST or PSYCHO or any other classic horror you could care to mention. True, the majority of the movie is more of an atmospheric and occasionally spooky mystery procedural, but it earns its pay-off when we finally get to see the horrors of Sadako’s transference from VHS to your ACTUALFUCKINGLIVINGROOM.
I first caught this movie late one night on TV (when British TV actually showed “alternative” programming) and was utterly, and quite literally, paralysed with fear when Ryuji, the ex-husband of our protagonist, meets his grizzly end.
Even if you know it’s coming, it still makes you shit an entire brick.
Inside (2007)
Directed by Maury & Bustillo
Lowell Greenblat on his “Non-English Speaking Horror” pick: “Inside” is a missing link in horror history that too few people talk about. After decades of slasher films that eschewed the tension of “Halloween” for the gory kills of “Friday the 13th,” (itself a “Halloween” ripoff), 2007’s brought us Julien Maury and Alexandre Bustillo’s “Inside.” A shining example of French Extremism, “Inside” is about a pregnant woman stalked in her home by a crazy woman who wants her baby, but won’t wait until she gives birth. Unlike many slashers, most of the film is actually scary, with blood and gore used to embellish the horror instead of wallowing in set pieces. Maury and Bustillo use the kill scenes for punctuation instead of prose and it works to a chilling effect. It also has one of the most outlandish, yet fitting endings to any horror film. It will stay with you whether you want it to or not.
PULSE (2001)
Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Dana Vargas on her “Non-English Speaking Horror” pick:This Japanese tech horror film doesn't get the recognition it so richly deserves. Released at the height of the early internet craze, this unnerving film tells of a ghostly invasion via internet-connected home computers. Because it was released just after the zenith of the J-horror boom, which included The Ring, Audition, and Perfect Blue, it didn't make an impact at the box office, but boy, this is a terrifying exploration of social isolation, psychological trauma, and the terrors of technology that still feels timelessly relevant and eerie today. Plus it has probably one of the most frightening ghost encounters I've ever seen. Don't try to sleep after this one.
REC (2007)
Directed by Jaume Balaguero & Paca Plaza
Christopher Boise on his “Non-English Speaking Horror” pick: I love that it takes place just in an apartment complex during a zombie outbreak. Despite the terrors going on out in the world, there are a lot of sinister things happening to the people in the apartment complex. Plus the ending is so good.
Die Säge des Todes / Bloody Moon (1981)
Directed by Jesús Franco
Nick Bankhead on his “Non-English Speaking Horror” pick: A love letter to the early American slasher movies, this 1981 gore fest is rad, rad, rad.
Tumbbad (2018)
Directed by Rahi Anil Barve
Matt Orozco on his “Non-English Speaking Horror” pick: “Tumbbad” is the kind of film where the less you know the better before going in. It’s a Hindi language film and is best described as Hellraiser meets Canterbury Tales with some time jumps. Saying anything more about it would take away from the surprises and some absolutely stellar atmosphere. There are some genuinely creepy images in this, and if you haven’t taken in any West Asian horror before, “Tumbbad” is a great place to start your journey!
Pop Culture” by following MacabreDaily on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
