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Wednesday, November 26, 2008

"CBE" Update: The Ones That Didn't Make the Cut

Yes, I've taken to abbreviating "Cyber-Horror Elite"--partly to diffuse the tensions caused by that phrase, and partly because I just love acronyms.

In response to the lively and passionate debate that's arisen as a result of my last blogosphere-rippling post, I thought it might be a good idea to list all the other films which were in consideration, yet didn't make the final list of fifty. So here, for your edification, and to answer a lot of the "Hey, what about _______??!" comments, are all the other flicks that received votes from our venerable panel of blowhards:

The ones that almost squeaked through, but not quite:

  • Dagon
  • Peeping Tom
  • Cat People (1942)
  • Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956 & 1978--the original came out ahead, for those keeping score)
  • The Ring
  • Dr. Jeckyll & Mr. Hyde (1932)
  • Sisters
  • Horror of Dracula (highest-ranking Hammer)
  • 2000 Maniacs
  • Donnie Darko
  • Hellraiser
  • The Blood-Spattered Bride
  • The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
  • The Silence of the Lambs
  • Don't Look Now
  • Island of Lost Souls

Yet more also-rans:

  • Tenebrae
  • Gojira
  • Alice, Sweet Alice
  • The Devil's Nightmare
  • The Werewolf vs. The Vampire Women
  • The Cave of Demons
  • The Cat and the Canary
  • The Uninvited (1944)
  • The Old Dark House
  • Re-Animator
  • Vampire Circus
  • Creepshow
  • The Curse of Frankenstein
  • Halloween IV: The Return of Michael Myers
  • Scream
  • Vampyres
  • Eyes Without a Face
  • Pan's Labyrinth
  • Deliverance
  • Manhunter
  • Dead Alive
  • Night of the Werewolf
  • The Abominable Dr. Phibes
  • The Wicker Man (1973)
  • Cloverfield
  • Toby Dammit
  • The Birds
  • Ginger Snaps
  • Bloodsucking Freaks
  • Uzumaki
  • Plague of the Zombies
  • Halloween III: Season of the Witch
  • Vampyr
  • M
  • Picnic at Hanging Rock
  • Repulsion
  • This Night I'll Possess Your Corpse
  • The Howling
  • Carnival of Souls
  • Lost Highway
  • Burnt Offerings
  • Rabid
  • Werewolf of London
  • The Omen
  • Freaks
  • The Lost Boys
  • The Descent

And finally, the lonely little films that got only one point, by virtue of being the bottom choice on a single list:

  • Looking for Mr. Goodbar
  • The Funhouse
  • Vampire Lovers
  • Ringu
  • Shocker
  • Sleepless
  • Urotsukidoji
  • Night of the Hunter
  • I Walked with a Zombie

There you have it, list completists! You see, we're not as "populist" as we were originally accused of being. Old and crotchety, perhaps, but certainly not populist!

10 comments:

  1. Really interesting. That Horror of Dracula got more votes than the much more modern Vampire Circus or The Vampire Lovers.

    But the list says a lot about what is perceived as classics.

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  2. Now THAT'S a list! Unless I overlooked them, DUST DEVIL, MAD LOVE, and DIABOLIQUE would be a great additions, as would other Hammer films like FRANKENSTEIN MUST BE DESTROYED and HANDS OF THE RIPPER. Good work, guys!

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  3. OK, at least Hellraiser made this list...

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  4. Wow, I was quite surprised when Re-Animator and Hellraiser did not make the top 50 list, but good to see them both emerge for this.

    I also agree That Dagon was quite overlooked as a whole, and that it was pretty darn good movie.

    The only thing I disagree with is Halloween IV: The Return Of Michael Myers. I thought that IV - VI were horrible, and would have loved to see H20 or Rob Zombie's make it, as they are more deserving.

    Bill

    fxguy.livejournal.com

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  5. I suppose there might be some confusion what with the new Soderbergh film and all, but shouldn't it be "CHE?"

    Fun fact I just learned and keep passing along even though nobody cares: it's only an "acronym" if the letters form a pronounceable word (NATO); otherwise it's an "initialization."

    Anyway, good job with this. Glad to know the go-to horror bloggers have excellent taste in movies, by which I mean they agree with me.

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  6. I STILL can't believe Re-Animator didn't make the big list. That is a fucking injustice I tell you.

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  7. Oh, and Horror of Dracula.

    Oh well, at the very least, I've got a ton of new horror films to check out. Kudos Mr. B.

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  8. My pleasure sir. This list thing really has stirred up a veritable hornet's nest. Can't wait for the next one!

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  9. There's a lot of strong contenders out there, and when we're asked to just choose our top 10, I tell you filling that tenth spot was tough. A lot of films like Horror of Dracula were likely there knocking, just didn't make the individual top 10. And as a result fell from the top 50. If everyone submitted a top 50 (please no ideas there Brian) the lower ranks might have looked a lot different. I know I shake my head on a couple of these, as I'm sure Brian does as well, but to be fair the criteria was pretty broad "your favourite" I believe. How each individual decided to rank their list, and on what criteria is equally broad. This I think actually ads to the validity of the list rather than detracts from it. Personally I tried to be objective and select movies that I felt belonged for a variety of criteria, and not just "scariest, or historically important, etc."
    Good Job Brian.

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  10. Thanks Gary! No, I won't be asking for a top 50 from you in the near future, but another top 10, that may be a different story...

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