Η ταινία τρόμου αποτελεί ένα υποτιμημένο και παρεξηγημένο είδος. Είτε διότι κάποιοι το κατατάσσουν αμέσως σε μία κατηγορία πιο κάτω από το υπόλοιπο σινεμά, είτε διότι το μεγαλύτερο μέρος των οπαδών του αγκαλιάζει μόνο αισθητικά το σκοτάδι και το αίμα και όχι ουσιαστικά. Εδώ όμως υπάρχουν τα εξής ερωτήματα: Πώς αλλιώς θα μπορούσε ο κινηματογράφος να εικονοποιήσει την πολιτική και κοινωνική βία στα καταναλωτικά 70ς αν όχι μέσα από το αιματοκύλισμα του Dawn of the Dead του Ρομέρο; Πώς αλλιώς να δείξεις την βία της μοναξιάς αν όχι με τον αγωνιώδη τρόμο του Audition του Μίικε; Πώς να δεις τον πόλεμο του Βιετνάμ ως μία υπόθεση πολύ προσωπική, βαθιά μέσα στον αμερικάνικο ψυχισμό και όχι στην άλλη άκρη του κόσμου αν όχι μέσα από το The Last House on the Left του Κρέιβεν; Υπάρχει άλλος δρόμος προς το υποσυνείδητο, πιο τρομακτική αποτύπωση της θέλησης για δύναμη, πιο αντάξια του Μαρκησίου Ντε Σαντ αποτύπωση της σεξουαλικότητας από το Hellraiser του Μπάρκερ; Οι ταινίες φρίκης περιορίζονται στο αίμα μόνο για όσους δεν θέλουν να δουν πιο πέρα. Στην πραγματικότητα αποτελούν την πιο ειλικρινή και απενοχοποιημένη έκφραση του ανθρώπινου ψυχισμού και της εκάστοτε πολιτικοκοινωνικής φάσης. Είναι στην ουσία εκφραστές των φόβων της εποχής τους (και της εποχής μας). Και ο ρόλος τους είναι να μας θυμίζουν ότι υπάρχουν λόγοι να φοβόμαστε αλλά και να λειτουργούν ως εκτόνωση των φόβων μας.

Γιάννης Κορρές

Βιασμός στο τελευταίο σπίτι αριστερά

(The Last House On The Left)

ΗΠΑ/USA, 1972, εγχ./col.
Σκην./Dir.: Wes Craven. Σεν./Scr: Wes Craven. Φωτ./Cin.: Victor Hurwitz. Μοντ./Ed: Wes Craven. Μουσ./Mus.: David Hess. Ηθ./Cast: Sandra Peabody, Lucy Grantham, David Hess, Fred J. Lincoln. Παρ./Prod.: Sean S. Cunningham. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 84΄.

A pair of teenage girls are headed to a rock concert for one's birthday. While trying to score marijuana in the city, the girls are kidnapped by a gang of convicts. Later the gang finds shelter in the girl’s parent’s house. Craven’s film is nihilistic allegory of America at the times of the Vietnam war and radical social changes. The film was banned in many countries for as long as three decades.

Ζωντανός-Νεκρός
(Re-animator)

ΗΠΑ/USA, 1985, εγχ./col.

Σκην./Dir.: Stuart Gordon. Σεν./Scr.: Dennis Paoli. Φωτ./Cin.: Ubaldo Terzano. Μοντ./Ed.: Lee Percy. Μουσ./Mus.: Richard Band. Ηθ./Cast: Jeffrey Combs, Bruce Abbott and Barbara Crampton. Παρ./Prod.: Empire Pictures, Re-Animator Productions. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 86΄.

Herbert, a dedicated student at a medical college and his girlfriend become involved in bizarre experiment around the re-animation of dead tissue. The experiment is conducted by an odd new student, Dan, who becomes Herbert’s incorrigible housemate in this campy sendup of an H.P. Lovecraft story. The emphasis is on humour but once the dead walk, there is really plenty of gore.

Η έβδομη πύλη της κολάσεως

(The Beyond)

Ιταλία/Italy, 1981, εγχ./col.

Σκην./Dir.: Lucio Fulci. Σεν./Scr.: Lucio Fulci, Dardano Sacchetti, Giorgio Mariouzzo. Φωτ./Cin.: Sergio Salvati . Μοντ./Ed.: Vincenzo Tomassi. Μουσ./Mus.: Fabio Frizzi. Ηθ./Cast: Catriona MacColl, David Warbeck, Cinzia Monreale, Antoine Saint-John. Παρ./Prod.: Fabrizio De Angelis. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 87΄.

The New Yorker Liza Merril inherits an old hotel in Louisiana, and invests her savings to reopen the place. While repairing the building, many people die, and local Dr. John McCabe feels close to Liza and tries to help her to solve the mystery of the hotel. Meanwhile, Emily, a blind woman, advises Liza to leave the place as soon as possible. Later they realize that the place is one gate of hell and has been opened, permitting the dead walk on Earth.

Η όπερα του τρόμου

(Opera)

Ιταλία/Italy, 1987, εγχ./col.

Σκην./Dir.: Dario Argento. Σεν./Scr.: Dario Argento. Φωτ./Cin.: Ronnie Taylor. Μοντ./Ed.: Franco Fraticelli. Μουσ./Mus.: Brian Eno, Steel Grave, . Ηθ./Cast: Cristina Marsillach, Ian Charleson, Urbano Barberini. Παρ./Prod.: ADC Films, Radiotelevisione Italiana. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 107΄.

This is Dario Argento’s largest budget production as well as his most commercially successful film to date. A visually grandiose spectacle from the opening moment, inside a majestic opera house, to the bizarre sunlit final shot in the rolling Swiss hills. A young operatta is stalked by a deranged fan bent on killing the people associated with her to claim her for himself. The strength of the memorable images showcase the talents of a master of horror still at the top of his game.

Χελρέιζερ

(Hellraiser)    

ΗΠΑ/USA, 1987, εγχ./col.

Σκην./Dir.: Clive Barker. Σεν./Scr: Clive Barker. Φωτ./Cin.: Robin Vidgeon. Μοντ./Ed: Richard Marden. Μουσ./Mus.: Christopher Young. Ηθ./Cast: Andrew Robinson, Clare Higgins, Ashley Laurence, Sean Chapman. Παρ./Prod.: Christopher Figg. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 94΄.

A strange box reaches Frank’s hands. A box that, as promised, will open the gates to a world of pleasures that no mortal can possibly imagine. Frank takes the box, but he doesn't understand that the pleasures the box offers are to the demons who live within it. Between pure horror and sadomasochism, Hellraiser is a landmark in the history of the horror genre.

Audition

Ιαπωνία/Japan, 1999, εγχ./col.

Σκην./Dir.: Takashi Miike. Σεν./Scr: Daisuke Tengan. Φωτ./Cin.: Hideo Yamamoto. Μοντ./Ed: Yasushi Shimamura. Μουσ./Mus.: Kôji Endô. Ηθ./Cast: Ryo Ishibashi, Eihi Shiina, Tetsu Sawaki, Jun Kunimura. Παρ./Prod.: Satoshi Fukushima, Akemi Suyama . Διάρκεια/Dur.: 115΄.

A film producer holds an audition for a non-existent film so that his widower friend can select a new potential bride from the resulting audition pool. The widower ultimately becomes fascinated by one particular young woman. But first impressions can often be horribly wrong.

Tο μαγαζάκι του τρόμου

(The little shop of horrors)

ΗΠΑ/USA, 1962, α/μ./b&w.
Σκην./Dir.: Roger Corman. Σεν./Scr Charles B. Griffith. Φωτ./Cin.: Archie R. Dalzell. Μοντ./Ed Marshall Neilan Jr.. Μουσ./Mus.: Fred Katz. Ηθ./Cast: Jack Nicholson, Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph, Dick Miller. Παρ./Prod.: Roger Corman. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 72΄.

Ένας αδέξιος νεαρός δημιουργεί ένα φυτό στο μαγαζί του. Σύντομα το φυτό αυτό αρχίζει να δείχνει την δική του προσωπικότητα και ο νεαρός ανακαλύπτει πως η δίψα του φυτού για αίμα έχει ανάγκη από ανθρώπινη σάρκα. Το κλασσικό cult b-movie του Ρότζερ Κόρμαν έγινε ριμέικ το 1986 από τον Φρανκ Οζ και αργότερα ανέβηκε ως μιούζικαλ στο Μπρόντγουεϊ.

Κόλαση
Jigoku

Ιαπωνία/Japan, 1960 , α/μ./b&w.

Σκην./Dir.: Nobuo Nakagawa. Σεν./Scr.: Nobuo Nakagawa. Φωτ./Cin.: Mamoru Morita . Μοντ./Ed.: Toshio Gotô. Μουσ./Mus.: Michiaki Watanabe. Ηθ./Cast: Shigeru Amachi, Utako Mitsuya, Yôichi Numata. Παρ./Prod.: Shintoho Film Distribution Committee. Διάρκεια/Dur.: 101΄.

A seminal depiction of the afterlife in Hell which is equal parts thoughtful, trippy, and gory as, well, Hell. A group of sinners involved in interconnected tales of murder, revenge, deceit and adultery all meet at the Gates of Hell. Shiro Shimuzu is having a rough couple of days and feels guilty for every bad thing that happened to the people close to him, until he realizes that this awful feeling is his punishment. 

The little shop of horrors

USA, 1962, b&w.

Dir.: Roger Corman. Scr Charles B. Griffith. Cin.: Archie R. Dalzell. Ed Marshall Neilan Jr.. Mus.: Fred Katz. Cast: Jack Nicholson, Jonathan Haze, Jackie Joseph, Dick Miller. Prod.: Roger Corman. Dur.: 72΄.

A clumsy young man creates a plant in his flower shop. The plant soon appears to have a personality of its own and this young man discovers that it's bloodthirsty taste requires human flesh. Roger Corman’s classic b-movie was remade by Frank Oz in 1986 and was latter developed as a musical on Broadway.

Jigoku

Japan, 1960 , b&w.

Dir.: Nobuo Nakagawa. Scr.: Nobuo Nakagawa. Cin.: Mamoru Morita . Ed.: Toshio Gotô. Mus: Michiaki Watanabe. Cast: Shigeru Amachi, Utako Mitsuya, Yôichi Numata. Prod.: Shintoho Film Distribution Committee. Dur.: 101΄.

A seminal depiction of the afterlife in Hell which is equal parts thoughtful, trippy, and gory as, well, Hell. A group of sinners involved in interconnected tales of murder, revenge, deceit and adultery all meet at the Gates of Hell. Shiro Shimuzu is having a rough couple of days and feels guilty for every bad thing that happened to the people close to him, until he realizes that this awful feeling is his punishment.

Dawn of the dead

Italy, USA, 1978, col. Dir.: George A. Romero. Scr.: George A. Romero. Cin.: Michael Gornick . Ed.: George A. Romero. Mus.: Dario Argento, The Goblins. Cast: David Emge, Ken Foree, Gaylen Ross, Tom Savini. Prod.: Richard P. Rubinstein. Dur.: 126΄.

A seminal depiction of the afterlife in Hell which is equal parts thoughtful, trippy, and gory as, well, Hell. A group of sinners involved in interconnected tales of murder, revenge, deceit and adultery all meet at the Gates of Hell. Shiro Shimuzu is having a rough couple of days and feels guilty for every bad thing that happened to the people close to him, until he realizes that this awful feeling is his punishment.