Final Women

I just finished reading a collection of Shirley Jackson stories, Dark Tales . I have always been a fan of Shirley Jackson, ever since I first discovered  The Haunting of Hill House  years ago, and We Have Always Lived in the Castle is one of the most gleefully haunting and disturbing books I have ever had the pleasure of reading. Needless to say, I was very excited when I discovered this recently compiled collection of some of her most macabre works. I can also say with certainty that I was not disappointed. Highlights include: "Paranoia" This story is slightly but delightfully mad, concerning a man on his way home from work who is slowly coming to the realization that he is being followed by someone with ill intentions and that there just might be a greater conspiracy at work, with multiple people out to do him harm. This story ratchets up the protagonist's paranoia, and reminds me of that saying, "Just because you're paranoid, doesn't mean they're n...

XX is an intriguing horror anthology film, directed completely by women, featuring four stories focusing on female characters facing horror both domestic and supernatural. The segments are framed by some beautifully grotesque stop motion animation created by Sophia Carrillo.  A haunted Natalie Brown in The Box The first segment, The Box is directed by Jovanka Vuckovic, former editor of my favorite horror magazine, Rue Morgue . In it, Susan (Natalie Brown from Channel Zero and The Strain ) and her husband become concerned when their son begins starving himself to death after seeing something (we never find out what) in a gift box held by an old man on the subway. Eventually their daughter begins refusing to eat as well, and then Susan's husband begins starving himself too, leaving Susan alone and searching for answers as to what has happened to her family. Melanie Lynskey is at her wit's end in The Birthday Party The second segment, The Birthday Party , is a ...

A late Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. I hope your day was lovely and full of good food. And don't forget: "That's not cranberry sauce!" Blood Rage (1987)

I just finished watching House by the Cemetery , a movie that's been sitting in my collection for several years, but which I only now got around to viewing. And, honestly, I loved it. It fits into a particular style, or sub-sub-genre of horror film that I am particularly fond of. That is the "haunted house" movie (whether it be haunted by actual ghosts or demons, witches, the undead, or something similar) where everything is moody, gothic, and a bit bizarre (kind of kitchen-sink horror, or "let's throw everything at the wall and just see see what sticks" horror). House by the Cemeter y is along the lines of two of my other favorites, Superstition and Ghosthouse (which, incidentally, is filmed in the same house as this one), as well as earlier entries into the Amityville Horror series. A particularly lovely house, the kind of place I'd like to live if it weren't for, you know,  all the demons and ghosts and murders, etc. Now, I will admit...

This is maybe a bit of an odd choice for my first book review, since Kelly Link's collection, Stranger Things Happen is not exactly straight-up horror. It's a mix of fantasy, horror, and the simply very, very weird. However many of the stories are infused with an uneasy dread. Several are eerie. A few are downright spooky. Two particular standouts include: The Specialist's Hat This is the third story in the collection, and the first one that really solidified my opinion that I did right by purchasing this book. While the stories that proceed it are wonderfully strange and haunting in their own way, this one really stuck with me. A spooky story of two identical twin girls spending a summer in a not-so-typical haunted house, this one is disturbing in a way that I can't quite put my finger on. I would definitely add this to the list of my favorite short stories. Survivor's Ball, or, The Donner Party Although the title of the story gives an indication of where ...

I believe this will be my last list of favorite Ladies of Horror, at least for the time being? Then again, I may wake up in the middle of the night and suddenly remember 19 more that I should have included. Who knows?                               Cherry Darling (Rose McGowan), Grindhouse: Planet Terror Abernathy, Zoe, Kim (Rosario Dawson, Zoe Bell, Tracie Thomas), Grindhouse: Death Proof Michonne (Danai Guria), The Walking Dead Santanico Pandemonium (Salma Hayek, Eiza Gonzalez), From Dusk Till Dawn (Movies, TV) Mandy Lane (Amber Heard), All the Boys Love Mandy Lane Brenda (Rebecca Gayheart), Urban Legend Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), Jurassic Park series Marybeth Dunstan (Tamara Feldman, Danielle Harris), Hatchet  series Rose (Laura Ortiz), Victor Crowley                   ...

For this post, I've included some television characters, because there's good horror on television too. Also, it's my blog, so if I decide I want to include Laura from Little House on the Prairie on this list, who's going to stop me?                             Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Buffy the Vampire Slayer Buffy is my hero. I'm also madly in love with her. Willow Rosenburg (Alyson Hannigan), Buffy the Vampire Slayer Christine (Adrienne Barbeau), The Convent Morticia Addams (Carolyn Jones, Angelica Houston, etc.), various adaptations of The Addams Family Beverly Marsh (Emily Perkins, Annette O'Toole, Sophia Lillis), IT The heart of the Loser's Club. Sookie Stackhouse (Anna Paquin), True Blood I've never understood why so many fans don't like her. Although I do think the show ultimately let her character down in  its final season, the sho...