A fresh stab at something horrific

What's your favorite scary move?! If it's Scream (1996), get excited because it's paying

at  Blue Starlite tonight with  Freaks(1932) and  Friday during Elvira Fest.

I love when  horror movies  not only surprise me with  jolts and jumps of  its scare tactics, but also with the story, character and themes; which is why "Scream" will always remain a stabbing excitement  to  my little movie-loving heart.

By the  time  "Scream" came to  theaters, slasher films became monotonous with an overused formula: bad guy with a mask, with a sharp weapon, hunts down  naïve teenagers, and the most  resilient of the group survives.  

But “Scream” changed that all, protesting that a slasher doesn't have  to be just dumb fun,that it isn't only concerned with a bloody body count. It poked  fun at the genre ( don't "say you'll be right back") while paying homage to it (Ghostface is terrifying  with his super sharp knife), and  breaking the  old formula  with dignity and a clever meta attitude. It's really the  "Network" of slasher films.

I was a teenager when "Scream" first came out, and my love of horror films blossomed shortly after. It had me gleefully revisit  horror films that were as innovative for their time, from the “Night of Living Dead” to “Halloween” to “Evil Dead.”

If you are looking for other innovative horror flicks which came after  "Scream" see my list below. Like  their predecessor, I think  they all  breathed new life into the genre.

Tucker and Dale vs Evil (2010)

It starts off as a spoof with its hilariously gross accidental deaths , but then surprises  with a narrative that carefully fills in the blanks of the true nature of its hero and villain.

The Descent (2005)

With an all female cast, its creature feature  formula  works as a catalyst  of the many folds of the female psyche. 

28 Days Later (2005)

The zombie  genre was almost  really, really dead until this would-be  indie came running with  its  dead-alive baddies   vs. its  protagonists,  who struggle to keep  life  precocious. 

The Host (2006)

A careful balance of  sociopolitical themes   and monster movie mayhem,  it's Godzilla meets  the thinkers' appeal.

Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010)

It's a horror film. No, it's a holiday horror film; but it's not.  It's a satire sometimes. It's creepy and strangely  endearing at the same. It's just wacky, and hard not to like  it even though you think you shouldn't.