Your Top 10 Slasher and Giallo films

[StatCat]

Ok I haven't posted at badmovies.org message board in close to 3 years, yikes  I've just been busy and have really lost track of this site, but I wanna catch up a bit again. I posted two reviews here a long time back which you can check out- Dawn of the Mummy and Psych Out. I have enjoyed this site for close to ten years now.

I've been getting into watching a lot of slasher and giallo films lately and I was wondering what would you pick for a top 10 list of each? This might've been done before so apologies but it must of been awhile ago.

Now I'm not sure if these would be labeled "good" movies for the most part, I'd guess overall not so it seems pretty fitting right here. There's tons of horrid slasher movies honestly but most of them, even the bad ones, are entertaining usually.

mine would include

Black Christmas
Halloween
Friday the 13th
The Burning
Madman
My Bloody Valentine
House on Sorority Row
Slumber Party Massacre
Stage Fright (Italian, but much more in a slasher film mode)
Tourist Trap

Now the genre that slasher movies owe a lot of debt to, the Italian giallo. Here's some of my personal favorites,

Bay of Blood
Blood and Black Lace
Deep Red
Tenebre
Watch Me When I Kill
What Have You Done to Solange
The Strange Vice of Mrs Wardh
So Sweet, So Dead
Torso
Eyes of Crystal (one of the few newer giallos, 2004, that gets it right)


You don't have to post lists, just talking about a few films you like (especially the less known ones) would be interesting.

[Skull]

My top 10...

1... Torso (1973)
2... Black Christmas (1974)
3... Private Parts (1972)
4... Deep Red (1975)
5... Pieces (1982)
6... Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)
7... Halloween (1978)
8... Tourist Trap (1979)
9... And Soon the Darkness (1970)
10... Seven Blood Stained Orchids (1972)

[Skull]

1... Torso (1973)

This is one my most favorite Slasher/Giallo film's, I really like this film because its has several visual elements that predate Halloween. I also believe that Torso is a starting point of the Classic Giallo crossing to the modern (American Teenage/Students) slasher films. I also like the fact that there's a killer in the school grounds and the girls decide to go FAR-FAR away from the killer, only to be followed by the killer.

2... Black Christmas (1974)

I must of seen this film almost a million times... Black Christmas is a must see horror film! If your looking for a good horror/slasher film and you have not seen Black Christmas (1974) then STOP LOOKING!

3... Private Parts (1972)

This isnt the Howard Stern movie but it you Google Private Parts most likely you'll see his face... :(

Private Parts is almost an early American attempt in a Giallo, there are others but this one in particlar was backed by a major studio to capitalize on the Sexual Exploitation Film Industry of the early 1970's. So the cast, characters and story is unsually good!

I'm not quite sure about why the film didnt succeed in the mainstream horror market but I'm guessing that the director intended to make a Black Comedy and the story is more much darker.


4... Deep Red (1975)

Deep Red is one of those surreal horror stories that cannot be easly explained, and then most of Dario Argento films on the 1970's and early 1980's are quite surreal.


5... Pieces (1982)

If you looking for a over-the-top slasher film then Pieces is your Holy Grail.


6... Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)

Personally I think Friday the 13th part 2 is one of the better (best) Friday the 13th film.

7... Halloween (1978)

What could I really say about Halloween? If you have not seen the 1978 version then you must be living in a cave and mostlikely not on the internet... :)

8... Tourist Trap (1979)

I very good slasher story that seemed to be victimized by the MPAA. From my understanding Tourist Trap recieved a PG rating (hehehe) and horror fans of the late 1970's early 1980's assumed that Tourist Trap is a weak slasher film and it failed at the box office. I find the history quite funny because most mainstream/modern horror films are now PG-13 (also known as the lite R) to make more money at the box office.

9... And Soon the Darkness (1970)

Story 2 girls bicycling across the French countryside, they get into a fight and split up, and now one girl is missing.

I find this story quite intresting because of the random target that suggest anybody could be the victim. Usually a target isnt truely random in a typical Giallo/Slasher film so this is a nice find.


10... Seven Blood Stained Orchids (1972)

I find Seven Blood Stained Orchids a fun Giallo/Slasher film.

[StatCat]

hey thanks for a great reply! I never heard of private parts actually- I'm going to be looking that one up.

I used the hysteria lives site recently to research slashers/giallos and it's a pretty good resource, I think some of their ratings are screwy though.

I only saw and soon the darkness recently, it's a pretty good movie, some stuff is pretty haunting. A real strange find at my library.

Pieces is over the top for sure, nothing quite like that one, real nostalgia cover art too.

I think there's a lot to deep red, it takes some critical analysis and reading to understand bits of it. It's a really brilliant movie that I'm going to say is Argento's best. He would get more surreal with what came later I guess. His other early giallos are good to sort of boring (bird with the crystal plumage being good and four flies on grey velvet and cat o nine tails being kind of so so)

My brother hates Black Christmas, he never heard of it but I told him stuff like when a stranger calls and halloween (a fav of his) ripped it off a bit. I guess as a halloween fan that kind of made him have a angsty viewing stance.

[voltron]

Nobody mentioned Just Before Dawn yet. Personally I think it's an absolutely brilliant slasher with great acting and atmosphere. The soundtrack by Brad Friedel is excellent, too. And it's got GEORGE KENNEDY!
One giallo that's kind of rare is Giallo A Venezia which is mostly filled with softcore sex scenes which turned me off the movie.
The House With Laughing Windows was great, though. Deep Red rules as well.

[StatCat]

I think I went into Just Before Dawn with higher than average expectations. It's ok but I think I liked the movie Rituals from 1977 more as a trapped in the woods kind of slasher. I like the shock surprise in it (just before dawn I mean)

I know Gore in Venice- it's ranked sometimes as the goriest/nastiest giallo along with NY Ripper and The Killer is Still Among Us. It's definitely a sleazy/trashy movie.

[voltron]

I think I went into Just Before Dawn with higher than average expectations. It's ok but I think I liked the movie Rituals from 1977 more as a trapped in the woods kind of slasher. I like the shock surprise in it (just before dawn I mean)

I know Gore in Venice- it's ranked sometimes as the goriest/nastiest giallo along with NY Ripper and The Killer is Still Among Us. It's definitely a sleazy/trashy movie.

Rituals was freakin' amazing! 

[Skull]

hey thanks for a great reply! I never heard of private parts actually- I'm going to be looking that one up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-1Lgp95KdI

Its much better then I orginally thought. It has a real neat suprise ending that predates a much more famous movie from the 80's (You'll get it once you see the ending)

I used the hysteria lives site recently to research slashers/giallos and it's a pretty good resource, I think some of their ratings are screwy though.

I havent tried Hysteria...


I review several sites for movies (sometimes here hehe) but I usually go to "The Terror Trap" http://www.terrortrap.com/television/televisionterror.htm and "The Bad Cinema Diary" http://www.cathuria.com/bcd/

I only saw and soon the darkness recently, it's a pretty good movie, some stuff is pretty haunting. A real strange find at my library.

I'm quite amazed that And Soon the Darkness is so simple and effective and its from 1970... :)

Pieces is over the top for sure, nothing quite like that one, real nostalgia cover art too.

Pieces is king!

I think there's a lot to deep red, it takes some critical analysis and reading to understand bits of it. It's a really brilliant movie that I'm going to say is Argento's best. He would get more surreal with what came later I guess. His other early giallos are good to sort of boring (bird with the crystal plumage being good and four flies on grey velvet and cat o nine tails being kind of so so)

Dario Argento is quite good when he's trying to be surreal, sadly he hasnt been for years. Although, I do like Trauma but its no Deep Red/Suspiria or Inferno...

Also, Dario Argento needs stop making movies with Asia Argento... I dont know its seems natural that he keep making movies with his daughter and she keep showing her boobs.


I'm also upset with Mother of Tears... The movie was ok but its not worth 30 years of waiting...

My brother hates Black Christmas, he never heard of it but I told him stuff like when a stranger calls and halloween (a fav of his) ripped it off a bit. I guess as a halloween fan that kind of made him have a angsty viewing stance.

Halloween is good because John Carpenter wasnt trying to franchise "Michael Myers" he wanted to franchise a horror series (a different horror movie each year) sadly too many people were stuck on *stupid* and they only wanted Michael Myers in the Halloween series.

Although I know a ton of Halloween fans will disagree with me but Halloween and Halloween 3 are the best of the silly series.


I like Black Christmas because there is so much detail within the movie. Although it wasnt successful in the show (I think it fail at the box office because the movie was released in December 1974, and December is too F'n cold to watch a drive-in horror film)

[voltron]

I forgot to mention Maniac (1980). I wouldn't call it a typical slasher, but it's pretty brutal and uncompromising. Joe Spinell's performance is one of the most harrowing portrayals of a serial killer I have ever seen. Makes Henery:Portrait Of A Serial Killer look like a kiddie movie in comparison.
Oh yeah, the August Underground movies deserve mention. Again, I would'nt call them slashers, more like pseudo-snuff films. If you can make it through them, you can sit through anything.

[zombie no.one]

What Have You Done to Solange

the semi-follow up WHAT HAVE THEY DONE TO YOUR DAUGHTERS is better in my opinion. (the giovanna ralli pic in my avatar is from a scene in it!)

agree generally about DEEP RED being excellent

I think I need to see PIECES...

[RCMerchant]

I agree with Skull on HALLOWEEN...the first and third were my favorites in that series as well.

Lotsa good ones here. Surprized that Hitchcocks PSYCHO hasn't been mentioned,as thats the grand daddy of all slasher films,IMHO.
DEEP RED is my favorite Argento movie,by far.Also like The BIRD WITH THE CRYSTAL PLUMMAGE and TENEBRAE.
Howza 'bout Micheal Powell's PEEPING TOM? Very creepy!
Hitch's FRENZY.
Love TOURIST TRAP as well.
PIECES is gory and hilrious.
SLEEPAWY CAMP!
DRILLER KILLER!
MS.45! A girl dressed up as a nun blowing away scumbags with her Dirty Harry piece!
NIGHT of BLOODY HORROR is good fun! And it has Gerald (MAJOR DAD) McRaney!
HATCHET for the HONEYMOON !!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_4XwT6OTSg

[zombie no.one]

^ that trailer doesn't make much sense, lol

Incidentally BLACK XMAS has been upped in its entirety on youtube, in about 10 or 11 parts. I watched it over xmas as it happens, and it's very good. surprised I had not heard of it before

[Skull]

I agree with Skull on HALLOWEEN...the first and third were my favorites in that series as well.

Its nice to know that others have good taste in films... :)


I personally think FRENZY is a little better then Psycho. Its Hitchcock without restrictions from the Hays Code... :)


Agree you cannot discount Psycho. I always thought Psycho should be ranked on the top 5 of the AMC's 100 greatests films.

[hobie parnell]

:question:can i put my top 10 slasher films on this site

[Rev. Powell]

:question:can i put my top 10 slasher films on this site

Depends on what you mean by "put."    You can list them like everyone else in the thread.