Horror Blog Of The Month: I LIKE HORROR MOVIES

Yay, it's that time again!

May I introduce to you:

I LIKE HORROR MOVIES, an absolutely terrific and enormous blog, created by a nice guy called Carl.

When I first began the foray into the world of horror blogging, this was one of the first blogs that caught my attention - and it also inspired me to do my very own blog.

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Maynard:

Hi Carl! Who are you and why do you blog?

Carl:

My name is Carl Manes, and I run an Independent Horror website called I Like Horror Movies. I have been a huge Horror fan for as long as I can remember, but I have only been writing about film for about three years now. I originally started the site to expose new Horror fans to the widest range of new movies as possible from all aspects of the genre in the same way that many other Horror sites had helped me.

My dad really shaped my love of Horror, since he used to rent out one of the JAWS or PIRANHA films every single weekend for us when we were kids. Mom hates the movies more than anything else in life, so her oppressive religious values have served as an even bigger inspiration to continue watching. My tastes were pretty mainstream up until college, when I first began my DVD collection and began expanding my Horror-o-scope. I spent countless hours searching the web to find new films that I had never heard of, and that search continues to this day.

Horror blogs are one of the greatest resources any Horror fan could ever hope for, as it is the Independent news and review sites that are truly keeping the genre alive. Horror fans are always laughed aside for their morbid curiosities, but I have always found Horror enthusiasts to be the most critical and thoughtful reviewers on the web. We simply love the genre! Blogging has been a tremendous experience for me, since I have been able to link up with many other like-minded fans in order to create lasting friendships.

Which movie made you a horror fan (and why)?

Ironically, one of the worst sequels of all time had the greatest impact on me as a kid. JAWS: THE REVENGE was always my favorite sequel growing up. I loved Lance Guest in the role of Michael Brody, and it was always the scariest film in the series to me. Looking back at it now, it is by all rights a terrible film, but I loved it. I used to go swimming in the pool and have panic attacks when I would go underwater because I was certain that the shark was going to come out of the light in the deep end and eat me. I'm still not entirely convinced that it isn't at this point. It wouldn't be until years later when I would discover AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON, which was a long time favorite, but now, I would have to say that THE WICKER MAN has become by all-time favorite film.

Who is your favorite horror director (and why)?

It has become so cliche to claim Argento as your favorite director in Horror, but when I first discovered him, I was immediately blown away. I love Carpenter, and John Landis has always cracked me up, but the bold use of color combined with the insane amounts of gore and electric music that Argento provides is just an assault on the senses. Now, I find myself watching more of Mario Bava's work, who is much more deserving of the title. 

Of the more recent directors, I think that Neil Marshall, Ti West, Lucky McKee, Michael Doughtery, and Glenn McQuaid are turning out some amazing films, and on the extreme Indie scene, PLAGA ZOMBIE's Pable Pares and Hernan Saez as well as The Soska Sisters who directed DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK will be the next names to look out for.

Your all-time horror movie favorites are... 

This is such a loaded question, and nearly impossible to answer in short form. As a Horror fan, you can't just answer JAWS or THE EXORCIST and be taken seriously. The problem is, those really are the films that define the genre, and they top my list. Since the only specification was to list more than 5, here are a quick 79 films that come to mind:

1. ALIENS

2. AMERICAN PSYCHO

3. AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON

4. AT MIDNIGHT I'LL TAKE YOUR SOUL

5. BATTLE ROYALE

6. BEHIND THE MASK: THE RISE OF LESLIE VERNON

7. BLACK CHRISTMAS

8. BLOOD DINER

9. BLOOD MOON

10. CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST

11. CASTLE FREAK

12. CAT PEOPLE

13. CITY OF THE DEAD

14. THE COMPANY OF WOLVES

15. DAGON

16. DARK CITY

17. DARK WATERS

18. DEAD ALIVE

19. DEATH RACE 2000

20. DEMONS

21. THE DESCENT

22. THE DEVIL'S REJECTS

23. EVIL DEAD 2

24. THE EXORCISM OF EMILY ROSE

25. THE EXORCIST

26. THE EXORCIST 3

27. THE FLY

28. FRIDAY THE 13TH: PART VII

29. FUNNY GAMES

30. GAMERA 3: THE REVENGE OF IRIS

31. GINGER SNAPS

32. GOJIRA

33. HALLOWEEN

34. THE HITCHER

35. HOSTEL

36. I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE

37. INTRUDER

38. JASON X

39. JAWS

40. KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE

41. LET THE RIGHT ONE IN

42. LET'S SCARE JESSICA TO DEATH

43. MAN BITES DOG

44. MARTIN

45. MAY

46. MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3D

47. NIGHT OF THE CREEPS

48. NIGHT OF THE LEPUS

49. NIGHT OF THE WEREWOLF

50. NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3

51. OLDBOY

52. OPERA

53. PEEPING TOM

54. PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE

55. PLAGA ZOMBIE: ZONA MUTANTE

56. PSYCHO

57. PUMPKINHEAD

58. RE-ANIMATOR

59. REPULSION

60. RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD

61. RIKI-OH

62. THE RING

63. SHAUN OF THE DEAD

64. SHOGUN ASSASSIN

65. SPIDER BABY

66. SUSPIRIA

67. A TALE OF TWO SISTERS

68. TEEN WOLF

69. TENEBRE

70. TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA

71. TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE

72. THE THING

73. TROLL 2

74. THE VANISHING

75. VIDEODROME

76. WHO CAN KILL A CHILD

77. THE WICKER MAN

78. NIGHT OF THE DEMON

79. BLACK SUNDAY

Oh my goooooood, what a list :)

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What's the worst horror movie you've seen so far?

There are so many awful films out there, it is almost harder to choose which are the worst than which are my favorite! I have found many of the holiday Horror films to rank amongst the absolute worst movies out there. The only film I have ever given a 1/10 rating to was for the poor excuse of a film called PSYCHO SANTA. It fails on ever single level imaginable, and can't even pull off some decent nudity or gore to make up for the director's complete lack of ability.

Most of my friends don't like horror films. How about your friends?

I would say about a fourth of them tolerate it, but very few actually enjoy it. I have had the pleasure of meeting up with some great new people over the last year thanks to some of the local Horror festivals, so our numbers are growing steadily!

Choose: Freddy? Jason? Leatherface? Michael? The Tall Man? Other?

Leatherface has always been misunderstood, the poor guy. I have never been a fan of Freddy. I occasionally enjoy his one-liners, but the series as a whole was always way too over-the-top for my tastes (with the exception of Dream Warriors and New Nightmare). Jason has been a long time favorite because he is always given the best kill scenes. Not necessarily the most creative, but always the most brutal and bloodiest. Who can beat the sleeping bag gag? Michael is so haunting and effective because his rage is pure and unadulterated. Unlike any of the other villains, he is simply evil incarnate, and his blank mask is reflective of his soulessness. My new favorite, however, has to be Leslie Vernon. BEHIND THE MASK is a brilliant deconstruction of the Slasher genre at large, and Nathan Baesel's performance as the character is both witty and chilling.

Choose: US horror? European horror? Asian horror? Other?

I am a child of the 80's, so as stupid and repetitive as the Slasher era was, it will always hold a special place in my heart. American Horror may also be the most diversified, but that is also due to the fact that we have churned out hundreds of more films than any other country around the world. 

The Italians have produced some of the goriest and most shocking entries in the genre, but before films like DEMONS or CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, they were also introducing fantastic Gothic Horror films and the colorfully demented Giallo murder mysteries. Across the channel, Hammer and Amicus were also delivering some of the most brilliant Gothic Horror films as well, so the European tradition in Horror has had the largest growing impact on my recent viewing habits. 

I am a huge giant monster movie fan, so my Asian tastes typically gravitate towards Godzilla, Mothra and friends, and although I enjoy the ghost pictures like JU-ON and RINGU out of Japan, I have been most impressed with the recent releases coming out of Korea lately. A TALE OF TWO SISTERS and THE VENGEANCE TRILOGY are some of the greatest achievements in any genre over the past decade, and they just happen to be Horror films. 

Choosing a favorite out of the three is difficult, but as much as I love international Horror, I watch American Horror at least 2:1 in my daily viewing.

Do you prefer watching horror at home or at the theater?

I rarely go to the movies unless it is to see something in 3D. I love gimmicks. The ticket prices are way too expensive, and getting a baby sitter on top of that brings the cost to see one lousy flick up to $40 when a DVD can be scored for under $10 online. There is nothing quite like experiencing a film with a theater audience, and many times the reactions of those around you can completely change your outlook on a film. It can be a great experience, but more often than not, I end up in audiences with a bunch of loud, obnoxious people that remind me why I never go to the theaters in the first place.

What kind of music do you like?

I didn't realize that there were any other options besides Rock. I can't stand the new music kids are listening to these days. Garbage. I stick with my Led Zeppelin, Def Leppard, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, Megadeth, and any like-sounding bands. My some of my favorite songs are Soul to Squeeze, Nutshell, Plush, Outshined, Touch Peel and Stand, and Midnight Rider.

What do you read?

The first answer that comes to mind is nothing. I am a poor reader, it is just so hard to sit down with a book with so little time in the day, and by the time I do pick up a book before bed, I can't get two pages in without falling asleep. I do spend a few hours reading Horror blogs every weekend and catching up on all of the great new films I may have missed. The most recent books I have completed were The Encyclopedia of Horror Movies, Going to Pieces, Werewolves, and Joe Bob Goes Back to the Drive-In, and I have The Unofficial Biography of Godzilla, Understanding Movies, and a handful of other film review books piled up for a rainy day. Horror mags are just too expensive to continue purchasing when they tend to focus on more recent and mainstream Horror movies and when there is so much excellent content available for free online.

Tell me the first 3 things that come to your mind when you think about Austria.

Franz Ferdinand, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and "Why are Austria and Australia so similarly named?".

Anything else you wanna tell us?

I would just like to welcome everyone to the site, and one thing that I rarely receive is recommendations, so if anyone ever has any films that they either think that I would like or films that they would like an opinion on, I welcome feedback and requests from everyone! I Like Horror Movies also makes it out to as many Southern Californian film festivals and events as possible, so be sure to look for us at Monster Island Resort's Horrible Imaginings Film Festival in San Diego, the monthly BleedFest Film Festivals in Sherman Oaks, and Creation Entertainment's Weekend of Horrors!

Thank you, Carl!

http://www.ilikehorrormovies.com/

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