New book by Larry Connors Click here Improve your trading - See how
That was, without a doubt, the scariest movie experience in my life (unless you count the time I went to an Adam Sandler movie and the projector didn't break down).
A close second was when my wife and I saw "The Blair Witch Project" at the midnight screening at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. Seeing it before the hype set in, when we could suspend our disbelief and buy the premise that produced that shaky video footage, it was easy to get sucked into the plight of college kids Heather, Josh and Mike lost in the woods. It was so believeable that when stars Heather Donohue and Joshua Leonard took the stage, many in the audience yelled with genuine concern, "Where's Mike?!?"
If you want to program a scary home-movie night, those two movies are a great place to start. Here are some more suggestions:
-- You can't beat Hitchcock: If you want a milder thriller, the classics "Vertigo" (1958), "Rear Window" (1954) and "North by Northwest" are hard to beat. But for out-and-out scares, go for "Psycho" (1960), "The Birds" (1963) and the lesser-known, but supremely cringe-inducing, serial-killer tale "Frenzy" (1972).
-- Trashing the classics: At the risk of sacrilege, skip the original "Frankenstein" (1931) and go straight for "Bride of Frankenstein" (1935), which boasts more shocks, as well as pathos, humor and the amazing performance by Elsa Lanchester as the Bride. While I'm debunking the Universal Studios canon, if you plan to see Tod Browning's "Dracula" (1931), also check out the Spanish-language "Dracula" (1931), filmed on the same sets for the Latin American audience -- it's sexier, and just as chilling.
-- Which "Dracula"? Some swear by Gary Oldman in Francis Coppola's "Bram Stoker's Dracula" (1992) or Klaus Kinski in Werner Herzog's atmospheric remake of "Nosferatu" (1979) or Louis Jourdan in the 1977 BBC production. My favorite is Frank Langella, suave and seductive in the 1979 movie version, co-starring Laurence Olivier as Van Helsing.
-- Superior remakes: Philip Kaufman's 1978 version of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" and Zack Snyder's 2004 remake of "Dawn of the Dead" are both scarier than the originals.
-- A modern monster: Ridley Scott's "Alien" (1979) perfectly grafted horror into the science-fiction mix and gave us in Sigourney Weaver's Lt. Ellen Ripley, the most kick-ass woman to be terrorized by an eggplant-headed monster.
SEAN P. MEANS also writes the Culture Vulture in daily blog form at blogs.sltrib.com/vulture. Send tips, contributions and comments to vulture @sltrib.com.
To see more of The Salt Lake Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.sltrib.com. Copyright (c) 2008, The Salt Lake Tribune Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.
More News:
Market Updates |
Stock Alerts |
All Trading News |
Stock Index
About TradingMarkets | Contact | Advertise | Careers | Link to Us | Site Map | Help | Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Return Policy | Testimonials | Feedback
The Connors Group, Inc. ("Company") is not an investment advisory service, nor a registered investment advisor or broker-dealer and does not purport to tell or suggest which securities or currencies customers should buy or sell for themselves. The analysts and employees or affiliates of Company may hold positions in the stocks, currencies or industries discussed here. You understand and acknowledge that there is a very high degree of risk involved in trading securities and/or currencies. The Company, the authors, the publisher, and all affiliates of Company assume no responsibility or liability for your trading and investment results. Factual statements on the Company's website, or in its publications, are made as of the date stated and are subject to change without notice.
It should not be assumed that the methods, techniques, or indicators presented in these products will be profitable or that they will not result in losses. Past results of any individual trader or trading system published by Company are not indicative of future returns by that trader or system, and are not indicative of future returns which be realized by you. In addition, the indicators, strategies, columns, articles and all other features of Company's products (collectively, the "Information") are provided for informational and educational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. Examples presented on Company's website are for educational purposes only. Such set-ups are not solicitations of any order to buy or sell. Accordingly, you should not rely solely on the Information in making any investment. Rather, you should use the Information only as a starting point for doing additional independent research in order to allow you to form your own opinion regarding investments. You should always check with your licensed financial advisor and tax advisor to determine the suitability of any investment.
HYPOTHETICAL OR SIMULATED PERFORMANCE RESULTS HAVE CERTAIN INHERENT LIMITATIONS. UNLIKE AN ACTUAL PERFORMANCE RECORD, SIMULATED RESULTS DO NOT REPRESENT ACTUAL TRADING AND MAY NOT BE IMPACTED BY BROKERAGE AND OTHER SLIPPAGE FEES. ALSO, SINCE THE TRADES HAVE NOT ACTUALLY BEEN EXECUTED, THE RESULTS MAY HAVE UNDER- OR OVER-COMPENSATED FOR THE IMPACT, IF ANY, OF CERTAIN MARKET FACTORS, SUCH AS LACK OF LIQUIDITY. SIMULATED TRADING PROGRAMS IN GENERAL ARE ALSO SUBJECT TO THE FACT THAT THEY ARE DESIGNED WITH THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT. NO REPRESENTATION IS BEING MADE THAT ANY ACCOUNT WILL OR IS LIKELY TO ACHIEVE PROFITS OR LOSSES SIMILAR TO THOSE SHOWN.
The Connors Group, Inc.
15260 Ventura Blvd., Ste. 2200
Sherman Oaks, CA 91403
© Copyright 2009 The Connors Group, Inc.
