Tag Archives: throwback thursday

Throwbacks

Throwback: Late 90s Teen Horror

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Ah, the 90s.  They were fun, right?  So many great things came from that decade – the fashion, grunge, Must-See TV, Beanie Babies, The Backstreet Boys.  And, hey, what about that Macarena?

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These guys get it.

Fortunately for us, the decade also spawned a ton of horror movies – some great, some not so much.  But for this post, I want to focus on the last half of the decade and the rash of teen slasher movies all started by one little movie you might have heard about: Scream.

Scream came out in 1996 and revitalized the slasher genre.  I love this movie.  It’s a funny, bloody, self-aware good time, and the sequels – although they’re not as great – keep the punchline going.  Neve Campbell established herself as a worthy addition to the scream queen hall of fame, and Ghostface has now become almost as iconic as Michael Myers, Freddy, and Jason.

Following Scream, we had:

  • I Know What You Did Last Summer (October 1997)
  • Scream 2 (December 1997)
  • Disturbing Behavior (July 1998)
  • Halloween H2O (August 1998)
  • Urban Legend (September 1998)
  • Bride of Chucky (October 1998)
  • The Faculty (November 1998)
  • I Still Know What You Did Last Summer (November 1998)

I mean just look at that list!  I’m feeling the nostalgia.  For real.  How about you?  What’s your favorite movie from the list?

 

Television, Throwbacks

Throwback: Tales from the Crypt

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Hello, Boils and Ghouls.  For this edition of Throwback Thursday, I thought I’d talk about one of my favorite shows as a kid: Tales from the Crypt.  I’d always stay up on Saturday nights to make sure I didn’t miss an episode.  I still L-O-V-E this show.  Let’s talk about why you should, too.

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The Opening & Theme Song

From the very beginning, this show captured my attention.  There aren’t many shows I watch that I make a point of also watching the opening sequence every single time (Game of Thrones and Black Sails now also hold that honor).

I’d hear the groan of the wrought iron gate and immediately snap to attention.  I always wanted to visit that house as a kid – creepy decor, secret passageways, and it’s own basement crypt.  What kid wouldn’t love that?

And can I just say how much I love the theme song?  It’s actually been my ringtone for a few years now.  Danny Elfman is one of my favorite composers.  His music style is fun but still dark and perfectly set the tone of the show.

The Cryptkeeper 

The man himself.  The Ghostess with the Mostess.  I loved this guy. Still do, really.  He had just the right amounts of both fright and charm.  Not many people – dead or alive – can get away with the amount of puns that he could, and he was a master of it.  Sure, it was painful at times, but that was what made it so fun.

John Kassir’s voice work made Mr. Keeper an icon.  If the new version of Tales from the Crypt actually gets on the air, I doubt the new host will even come close to measuring up.

The Effects

I’m a fan of gore, and this show had no shortage of it.  Blood, guts, maggots – the special effects team brought it.  So it wasn’t realistic.  So what?  So someone that just died wouldn’t have rotted that much already.  So what?

So what?

The Guest Stars

This is what gives this show the greatest re-watch value.  There were so many great guest stars.  Catherine O’Hara, Demi Moore, Jeffrey Tambor, Steve Buscemi, Tom Hanks, Dan Aykroyd, Daniel Craig, and – my favorite – Tim Curry are just a few of the awesome stars that made an appearance on this show.  It’s so fun to watch serious actors ham it up in these crazy stories.

The Stories

The show itself was based on the comic books by the same name, so there was no shortage of crazy content. Episodes ranged from the comical, like the living comic book in “Korman’s Kalamity,” to the downright terrifying, such as the horrifying haunted house in “Television Terror.”

There were no happy endings in the Tales from the Crypt world. I have such fond memories of Morty the “hand puppet” (Not the meat grinder!).  Even when it almost works out for the main character, it doesn’t.  There’s always the twist at the end.

Whoa.  Maybe that’s why M. Night Shyamalan is rebooting it.  He just can’t get away from the twists.

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So glad I could SCARE up a few memories about one of my most FEAR-vorite shows.  Now, I’m just DYING to watch my collection again.

Man, I’m really bad at that.