Samityville's Best Films of 2010!

Morning cretins!

This year marked the first year in a new decade of horror, and what a varied year it turned out to be. Once again we were privy to a cinematic sea of endless American remakes, unnecessarily higher-budgeted sequels and more 3D movies than even William Castle could have conjured up. And while there were no doubt some undeniably killer pics that made their debut on our screens (and DVD/BluRay players) there were also more than the genre's fare share of disappointments, many of which dropped the ball in the final reel to frustrating results. The good, the bad and the ugly...2010 had a little of everything in bloody spades.

As most genre fans will probably attest, the good was (for the most part) easily siftable through the bad and compiled here is the first half of my two-part installment roundup. What was worth seeing, you ask? Read on to find out...



10. Daybreakers



Three Twilight films, a True Blood TV series and countless tween-targeted melodramatic vampire novels later, many horror fans the world over began clamoring for a return to the more vicious, unforgiving bloodsuckers of the past. And while it may not have been picture perfect on all counts (eg, the wildly out of place character of 'Elvis', uncomfortably played by the great Willem Dafoe), Queensland natives Michael and Peter Spierig still managed to deliver a uniquely distopian spin on a well worn sub-genre by fusing several conceptually intriguing ideas and elements of science fiction with all the hallmarks of a violent, blockbuster romp to entertaining effect. The film also worked well as a subversive comment on social class systems, using the creatures of the night as a sly metaphor for the consumption of the weak by the powerful and those wielding the corporate sword. Intelligence and popcorn in equal measure.

9. The Crazies (remake)



The first of three remakes on this year's list (and let's be honest, there had to be at least one), Brek Eisner's redo of George Romero's socially-minded original aimed itself at an entirely different audience and temperament by leaving much of the potentially relevant commentary at the door in favor of thrills, spills and an all round adrenaline-fueled chase scenario more than worthy of your time. And while the straightforward approach may have alienated more seasoned fans, the movie worked perfectly as a sign of our troubling 21st century times and the state of perpetual paranoia inherent within terrorism-targeted territories. The only drawbacks proved to be a slightly sub-par screenplay that lacked more attentive character development, particularly with regard to leads Timothy Olyphant and Radha Mitchell, both of whom still managed to deliver fine performances.

8. The Last Exorcism



Marketed like it was going out of style and with name horror filmmaker Eli Roth in tow as producer, Danial Stamm's directorial debut had a lot of industry clout behind it but thankfully the resulting yarn warranted most of the illustrious attention it received. The Exorcist-lite tale of a hypocritical preacher set to purge a young farm girl of her supposed 'possession' utilized its documentary style effectively and created a strong sense of intrigue and character suspicion throughout, only to have it ultimately defeated via a lousy ending that made no sense whatsoever. Despite the last minute downfall, this nifty little shocker was both freaky and thoughtful in even doses and boasted one of the best newcomer performances of the year.

7. Monsters



Melancholy, haunting and poignant. These are the words I can best describe this semi-sci-fi-horror-cum-heartfelt-drama set amid a not too distant future of alien invasion. The pseudo-District 9 inspired plot was simply a cover for the more emotionally resonant themes of the screenplay and the intensely detailed focus on its two main characters during their existential search for a human connection amid the insane world that surrounds them. It was a shame in many respects that the film was marketed the way it was but for anyone receptive to its noble intentions it proved to be one of the more pleasant surprises of the year, if not completely accommodating to all tastes.

6. Buried



In my opinion, Rodrigo Cortez deserves a serious high five for the casting of the underrated Ryan Reynolds in a role that could have made or maimed his American directorial debut. While not strictly a horror movie per se', the sheer level of claustrophobic dread and intense atmosphere of hopelessness that fueled this nifty little thriller helped make it one of the darker excursions into human desperation the multiplex had seen in many a year and served up an ending so nihilistic I could hear gasps coming from several rows back in the theater. Aside from Reynold's impressive one-man-show performance, the film also succeeds as a result of its incredible technical prowess and the way in which the filmmakers managed to sustain a visually interesting 90 minutes entirely from within the confines of a wooden coffin. Shame on you, Lions Gate for treating this one the way you did...

5. Frozen



Somewhat similar to Buried in its exploitation of its "what if?" scenario (albeit with more scenery abound), Adam Green's sophomore effort was almost a direct reversal of the visceral madness and goofball comedy so prevalent in his previous film Hatchet, this time having opted to tell a tale of epic human oversight and the devastating results experienced by a trio of unsuspecting youths forced to face the reality of an untimely demise. A thankfully likable cast of characters coupled with a frighteningly believable setup and (mostly) credible actions all contributed toward making this straightforward survival horror a bare bones exercise in good old-fashioned suspense and a solid example of how a film doesn't need explosive production values in order to sustain watchability. My only complaint: those wolves were a little too convenient, even for the woods...

4. Let Me In (remake)



When the newly re-crowned Hammer Studios announced it was set to make its belated return to our screens with a remake of Sweden's internationally lauded vampire romance Let the Right One In, 99.99% of film buffs said it couldn't be done. As it turned out, writer/director Matt Reeves not only managed to expand upon the lurid details merely hinted at in the original but also retooled the material toward a more distinctly horror/thriller sensibility while still retaining the former's emotional complexity and inescapable bleakness. The extraordinary talents of both Kodi Smirt-McPhee and Chloe Moretz were consistently stunning to watch, especially when considering the subtlety with which they played their roles and how much of the story's emotional weight rested upon their shoulders. Also notable was Richard Jenkins in a terrifically somber performance as 'The Father' forced to kill in order to provide his offspring with her much needed sustenance. Unfortunately, this little gem was unfairly boycotted by the majority of genre fans, resulting in a lukewarm box office and a limited theatrical release.

3. Piranha 3D (remake)



Joe Dante's 1978 satiric original has become a classic in its own right, not just for its B-movie charms but also for the wit and knowing absurdity of John Sayles' screenplay. And while 'splat pack' Frenchman Alexandre Aja opted not to carry over a shred of the original's social commentary, this 21st century version ended up serving as a near pitch-perfect homage to the more cheeseball, splatter chunk sensibilities so pervasive throughout the majority of 1980s sex comedies and pop horror exploitation. Not once during its brisk 90 minute running time did it ever take itself seriously, nor did it try to be anything more than a bombastic bachelor party bulging to the brim with boobs, blood and brain matter - and not the intellectual kind. Moreover, the impressive cast the films' producers managed to cull together, considering the material on show, was nothing short of astonishing. Pure trashy fun.

2. Amer



As I mentioned earlier this year in my review of Helene Cattet & Bruno Forzani's stunning giallo tribute, this is one film I still struggle to summarize, not because I don't know what to say but because I feel there is no way I can ever do the movie sincere justice through the use of the English language. And while that might sound pretentious as all hell, its the only way I can describe the effect this movie had - and still has - on my imagination. While arguably devoid of any real story (at least in the traditional sense), this is one of the few examples of cinema as art; a pure expression of heightened visual and aural language designed specifically to evoke an emotional reaction from an audience and challenge the rules of conventional logic by which we live our lives. The love and respect shown for the films that inspired it was also admirable, made even more apparent through the directing duo's willingness to add their own stylistic touches to established cliche's while still abiding by their classic framework. To this day, even when I think back to the film festival screening I attended I get a cool chill of satisfaction up my spine.

1. The Loved Ones



And here it is: my favorite horror movie of the year - and it's Australian! Not since Greg Mclean's Wolf Creek have I been so utterly floored by a native genre pic as I was with director Sean Byrne's debut filmic footprint, something rarely achieved in my compulsive fan boy brain. For the majority of local film critics, The Loved Ones provided a much needed reality check to those who largely considered the genre unworthy of serious analytical attention and gave hardcore fans a knowing tribute to their favorite shockers as well as a uniquely personal spin on a familiar tale while making sure to check all other boxes with a bloody red marker. The sincerity with which Byrne infused his screenplay and his attention toward the depiction of burgeoning adolescence within the landscape of a small country town and the resulting sense of isolation and alienation that can so often dictate one's emotions - in this case to the point of madness - are what helped elevate the film above its initially formulaic set up and into a more wholly emotional realm. And despite all the films' grisly theatrics, it was ultimately the affecting performances by Xavier Samuel and Robin McLeavy (not to mention a marvelous John Brumpton) combined with the talents of a young director so obviously confident in his abilities that made this macabre mini-masterpiece the demented delight that it is.

What say you, cretins?