Chuck's Top 10 Horror Films of the Last Decade

Marvin the Macabre from The Montana Mancave Massacre put out a Bat Signal, requesting top 10 lists from the internet's horror-sphere. Below is my personal list, not that of the Entire Midnight Cheese crew. Some of them may also post theirs, I know Noel is working on his.

Before we get started, I just want to admit that this was not easy. I picked movies on two different factors: did they scare me and/or did I have fun watching them. I'm sure you'll disagree, but I've got the floor so just sip your latte and sit there captain mocha pants.

#10 - Freddy vs Jason - 2003
Directed by Ronny Yu

I don't want to hear it, ok? I waited my entire adolescence for this film to happen and you know what? It was fucking awesome. Sure the teenage characters where generic and forgettable, but you know they aren't at all why you went to see this movie. Robert Englund is at the top of his Freddy game. The only lamentable point is the lack of Kane Hodder as Jason.

#9 - Dawn of the Dead - 2004
Directed by Zach Snyder

Yeah the remake. Does it stand up to Romero's instrumental classic? Absolutely not, it's not even in the same league. However, when you judge it on it's own merits, it's a fun zombie ride. The cast is great, the action starts nearly right away and the credits sequence is satisfying, to say the least.

#8 - Rammbock: Berlin Undead - 2010
Directed by Marvin Kren

I wrote about it here. It's very Romero inspired and it does it right. While it has a short running time, ever minute is engaged to full effect. The best zombie film of 2010.

#7 - 28 Days Later - 2002
Directed by Danny Boyle

It would have been hard to have this list without this masterpiece, as so many of my favorites are zombie flicks and this is the movie that brought the sub genre back from the dead. That's funny to consider when you realize that there aren't any zombies in 28 Days Later! (the dead do not rise in the movie, do they smart ass?)

#6 - Land of the Dead - 2005
Directed by George Romero

His first entry in the Dead series since 'Day in '85 has a social message more meaningful today, six years later, than it did on release. Here we have the absolutely filthy wealthy, living in secluded luxury, while the rest of the surviving human population all live in slums. They're all surrounded by zombies, but the rich aren't any worse off for it and could care less even though the world outside has ended. And, oh yeah, it's a great zombie movie too.

#5 - [REC] - 2007
Directed by - Jaume Balaguero

[REC] is a first person perspective demon/zombie movie from Spain. Set inside a small, old apartment building that has been sealed off by the government, we see through the eyes of a TV reporter's camera man. It's awesome, it's creepy and it scared the crap out of me. It was remade a year later as Quarantine for American audiences, who where judged too stupid to see a subtitled movie. See the real movie.

#4 - Grindhouse - 2007
Directed by - Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez

So I'm cheating a bit, but I saw this as it was meant to be: as on long experience, replete with cheesy trailers and snipes and clocking in at over 3 hours long. I refused to purchase it on home video, even though I loved every minute of it, until it was available in it's original form, last year. This is fun, this is entertainment, more than anything, this "gets it".

#3 -Paranormal Activity - 2007, released 2009
Directed by - Oren Peli

The Internet is rife with stupid man-babies in an echo chamber who think they are movie critics and all believe that they hate this film, most sight-unseen. I'll admit that it's the least technically proficient film in this list, no question. However, it scared me like no other movie this decade. It's effective, it's frightening and it does exactly what a horror film is supposed to.

#2 - Trick 'r' Treat - 2007
Directed by Michael Dougherty

Shelved for two years, then released direct to DVD, this anthology film channels the delightful macabre of the Tales from the Crypt and Creepshow series'. It revels in dishing out comeuppance and is wicked fun. Its been added to my yearly Halloween watch list as it embodies the spirit of that day more than any other film I can think of. It's a travesty what Warner Brothers did to it's release and it's robbed it from it becoming a yearly sequel release, as the director intended.

#1 - Shaun of the Dead - 2004
Directed by Edgar Wright

Where do I start on the subject of this Rom-Com-Zom? (romantic comedy with zombies). For starters, it lovingly lifts from and homages to all things Romero. It's witty, it's charming, it's hysterically funny. And its full of bloody zombies. I've watched this movie dozens of times and love it every time. It clicks on all wavelength and is, in my opinion, the best horror flick this past decade.

So there you have it, you may disagree but I want to know your list. Reply in the comments so I can check it out.

Rammbock: A Fresh Take on a Rotting Subgenre

Here at the Midnight Cheese, few things tug at our heartstrings quite the way that zombie films do. Actually it's more a vice-gripped, grasping tear at our heartstrings, followed by some breathless moans of delight and a hearty chomp down of dead teeth. So when we were given the chance to take an early look at the new DVD release of Rammbock: Berlin Undead, we pulled our shotguns off the mantle to repel those shambling monstrosities with good old American firepower!

From Midnight Cheese

Hold on a minute there John Wayne, this is not that sort of zombie movie. And you know what? That's exactly why it’s successful. Rammbock centers around the misadventures of broken hearted Michael, who hitches a ride into Berlin to try and win back his exgirlfriend Gabi, under the guise of returning her keys (Smooth). This is where our ride kicks off, as we waste almost no time immersing ourselves in the undead masses. Michael links up with Harper, a youthful handyman's apprentice, and the two manage to secure Gabi's apartment for the time being.

"But what about Gabi?" I know, shouldn't she be there? Turns out she just stepped out minutes before Michael arrived and could be anywhere. To make matters worse, our hero dropped his cell phone in the mad struggle to shore up their barricade in the first place. It's a very compelling hook, one which sinks in thanks largely to the performance of Michael Fuith. As our hero, he's very vulnerable but he's also very likable and determined. He and Harper, played by Theo Trebs, play off of each other very well and clearly have good on screen chemistry; which is absolutely essential in the narrow confines of Gabi's Berlin apartment complex.

The location scouts deserve a cookie here. The narrow apartment complex really pushes the claustrophobia up several notches, very much like the Spanish film [REC] (which I also highly recommend). Interestingly, the survivors can interact with each other via windows overlooking a small courtyard shared by the apartments-turned prison cells. But they can’t help one another, however much they might wish to.

From Midnight Cheese

Where Rammbock really sets itself apart, though, is with its clever spin on the zombie infection concept. Of the hundreds of films to come out during the last decade’s zombie boom, the vast majority of them are completely content to imitate exactly what has come before with very little variation. Perhaps they try to ratchet up the gore quotient or make the zombies run faster (or make them strippers, yikes), but all in all it’s fast become a stale, rotting subgenre. The zombies in Rammbock aren’t trying to tear you limb from limb or eat you. They’re rabid humans. They’re attacking to maim and they’re trying to bite survivors. The bite imparts an infection; pretty standard fare so far, right?

Ok check this out: the infection doesn’t turn you into a zombie unless your body produces adrenaline which moves the infection to your brain and causes an irreversible transformation. This sets up some pretty interesting scenarios. How do you keep yourself from triggering your fight or flight during the height of a zombie apocalypse? The film showcases several fascinating attempts to survive a bite infection, which is all the more important since the body can fight it off given enough time. However once you have to fight for your life or even just get over excited, it’s permanent zombification time. I won’t spoil the most effective technique for combating the undead, but it’s not guns. In fact, there aren’t any fire arms or head smashing in Rammbock. There is a lot of smart thinking going on and a handful on ingenuity.

At sixty-three minutes in length, Rammbock does not disappoint, packing more of a ride than most of its contemporaries do in ninety minutes. The new DVD release includes the standard behind the scenes feature we’ve come to expect and then delights with a very funny zombification public service announcement bonus. The newly minted DVD was released this week. Check out Rammbock: Berlin Undead, the most original take on the zombie concept since 28 Days Later.

From Midnight Cheese