Gory horror films that work

[Rev. Powell]

A while back there was a long thread about "non-gory horror films that work."  I thought the premise of the thread was kind of backwards.  All of the great, classic horror films I can think of weren't gory.  When I think of gory films I actually enjoyed, they're usually horror-comedies like EVIL DEAD II and DEAD ALIVE.

Frankly gore is just a special effect... it's not scary in and of itself.  And emphasis on gore seems to encourage laziness---it's much easier to add some blood to satisfy a teen audience than it is to think up something that's actually scary.

I guess DAWN OF THE DEAD comes to mind as one that's gory and scary.... what are some others? 

[ulthar]

I recall at the time thinking that the gore in OMEN III: THE FINAL CONFLICT worked.

But...that might have had more to do with the girl I saw the movie with, and the fact that neither of us were 17 at the time and the fact that we were on a school trip. Ah...the memories.

I think we saw one of the FRIDAY THE 13th movies the next night.   


(On a side note, I also recall having the whole theatre laughing at my ... shall we say inopportune ... comments during OMEN III.  It was a fun group, open to entertainment outside that provided by the movie itself).

[ghouck]

Braindead/Dead-Alive. So over-the-top it works with the not-so-serious nature of the film.

[claws]

Inside (2007)

[RCMerchant]

Dario Argento's DEEP RED comes to mind-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_plB345Sqk

Of course,NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968) and it's sequels.
.Cronenberg's SCANNERS.
.movies like CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST and DR.BUTCHER MD were made,I think,to shock. And they do! I love DR.BUTCHER. So much cheezy gore! On the other hand,CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST-eh-or MAKE THEM DIE SLOWLY-not so much. I dunno. Just me,I reckon. I think the zombie aspect of BUTCHER helps-if it gets too real-turns me off. But thats just me.

[RCMerchant]

Fulci has a way with gore that works-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0ZcLf0Qp-Q
Dam.Thats gotta hurt.

[Rev. Powell]

Braindead/Dead-Alive. So over-the-top it works with the not-so-serious nature of the film.

Yeah, that's kind of my point---gore works when it's over-the-top/funny, but it's not really scary.

Dario Argento is a a good suggestion for stuff that's gory and scary at the same time.

[Umaril The Unfeathered]

The throat-ripping scene from Lucio Fulci's Zombie was a real nasty time, I'll tell ya'.  In fact, I don't know which one was worse to look at, the eye-piercing scene with Olga Karlatos,  or the girl getting her throat ripped out later on in the movie! 

[Raffine]

I found HOSTEL, including the very painful-looking gore scenes, quite frightening. this film really creeped me out. Like the main characters, it took me quite a while to figure out what was really going on in that old abandoned factory. The scariest part was the premise is probably not that far fetched.

HOSTEL II however could suck the chrome offa bumper.

[Doc Daneeka]

Maniac works; it's a gritty and chilling film, and without its excellent gore scenes the grittiness (and by extension probably most of the chill factor as well) would be lost. I think Evil Dead 1 is a horror film that needs its gore to work.

Basically, gore works in any film that horrifies you in part or in whole by showing you the results of getting caught by "the monster" as opposed to just taunting you with the fact that said results "could be bad" and having you think up the rest. Neither type of horror is truly superior in my book.

[ulthar]

The gore in RE-ANIMATOR works and is a quite a departure from the source Lovecraft material (which was not overtly gory at all).

[voltron]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIB9LshMViI

[Hammock Rider]

I really liked the 1988 remake of The Blob. It had some pretty crazy gore. This scene is far from the worst.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CW6maJgzk7E&feature=related

[bob]

Saw

[Raffine]

I really liked the 1988 remake of The Blob.

This is one of the few instances where I like the remake more than the original. Sure, the original with Steve McQueen is a fun, cheesy classic - but I prefer the remake.