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👍 👍     Stuart Gordon Films Ranked

"I'm trying. I've only got four hands."

"To contemplate evil is to ask evil home."

"What do you want from me? I'm seven years old." Stuart Gordon Films Ranked

Ah,  Re-Animator  (1985), a classic that never gets old. I first saw it at the way-too-young age of 12 or 13 and I've loved it ever since. I've seen (and owned) it on VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, and now 4K UHD. I've seen it badly projected in a conference room at  Rock And Shock . I've seen it well-projected at the  Luna Theater . The 4K UHD release by Ignite Films features an absolutely beautiful transfer. Stuart Gordon 's splatter masterpiece has it all—camp, comedy, and gore galore, plus an indelible performance by  Jeffrey Combs , who gets most of the memorable lines (and delivers them with aplomb). In my opinion, it belongs on everyone's Top 10 Horror list (it's on  mine ). Stuart Gordon Films Ranked The Danman Top 100 Films (2024 Edition)

Finally checked this one off my list. Ghoulies (1985) was better than anticipated but certainly featured less of the titular creatures than expected. Interestingly, and contrary to popular belief (according to  Wikipedia , anyway), Ghoulies is not a rip-off of  Joe Dante 's  Gremlins   (1984) ( review ) and was in fact in production at the same time, but, due to the need for more funding, the latter blockbuster was released first. This little low budget film has pretty stock characters and lags a bit in the finale, but, at a lean and mean 81 minutes, it's hardly noticeable. It's also really fun, shot well, has a great score, goofy (but enjoyable) effects, and I like that each Ghoulie has a distinctive design. Every time those little shits were on screen—snarling and being mischievous—it brought a smile to my face and I couldn't help but laugh. Bonus points for the movie featuring two future  Twin Peaks  (1990–1991) actors (one of whom had a bigger role tha...

George Pavlou 's first two (of three) feature films were based on Clive Barker screenplays. While  Rawhead Rex  (1986) ( review ) (the second of those two) is a better film overall, 1985's  Underworld , though deeply flawed, is an interesting precursor to Barker's  Nightbreed  (1990) ( review ).  Jacob Knight  aptly stated in his  review  of UW  that it's "the  L.A. Takedown  (1989) ( review ) to  Nightbreed 's  Heat   (1995) ( review )," exploring a lot of the same territory. This neon-drenched neo-noir, released in the U.S. in a longer version known as Transmutations (which is included on the Blu-ray copy of  Kino Lorber 's  4K UHD  release that I picked up, so I'll have to watch that next time), was not what I expected based on the poster (thanks Charles Band ). Admittedly, it's uneven, underdeveloped, and not terribly exciting, but it's visually quite striking (particularly for a clearly ...

Rawhead Rex  (1986) is not a "good" film, but it’s  awful ly good fun. Full of hammy acting, cheesy makeup (though some of the effects are decent), and half-baked ideas—it’s more fun to laugh at than to glean anything thought-provoking from. It’s like a C grade  An American Werewolf In London   (1981) ( review ) and that’s OK—shitty monster movies have a place in the world too (and I kind of love this one). I do think that  Clive Barker  would have preferred for viewers to have a more meaningful experience with his  story , which is why I think it could be adapted again with more successful results. (Whoever tackles it should  definitely  keep the golden shower baptismal scene though.)

Holy tomato!—a charmingly campy and crude Charlie Band  cult cut. TerrorVision   (1986) features a cast of genre stalwarts, super weird and hilarious characters, ridiculously silly but creative creature effects, eye-popping production and costume design, and a really fun theme song by the Fibonaccis , reminiscent of Oingo Boingo and Missing Persons . A slime-covered '50s monster movie-cum-neon '80s horror sci-fi satire that scratches a very specific itch.

Unlike  Stuart Gordon 's debut  Re-Animator   (1985) ( review ), which I saw on VHS at the tender young age of perhaps 12 or 13, I don't believe that I saw  From Beyond   (1986)   until I was 27 (on DVD). Regardless, I fell in love with it immediately. In 2023 we are blessed to have FB  in an excellent 4K UHD  from  Vinegar Syndrome  (I'm still waiting for  Arrow Video  to upgrade R-A  to UHD). While not the all-time camp classic that  Re-Animator  is,  From Beyond  is still a blast. It's the second best  H.P. Lovecraft  adaptation from Gordon (of five, three of which were produced by Brian Yuzna ), who also adapted that other most famous horror fiction writer,  Edgar Allan Poe , twice. Like  Re-Animator ,  From Beyond  plays fast and loose with Lovecraft's  1934 short story , trading faithfulness to expand the story and really, let's face it, for t...

Rawhead Rex  (1986) is not a "good" film, but it’s awful ly good fun. Full of hammy acting, cheesy makeup (though some of the effects are decent), and half-baked ideas—it’s more fun to laugh at than to glean anything thought-provoking from. It’s like a C grade  An American Werewolf In London   (1981) ( review ) and that’s OK—shitty monster movies have a place in the world too (and I kind of love this one). I do think that  Clive Barker  would have preferred for viewers to have a more meaningful experience with his  story , which is why I think it could be adapted again with more successful results. (Whoever tackles it should definitely keep the golden shower baptismal scene though.)

Crawlspace (1986) never quite turns up the exploitation factor to a satisfying level to deliver the goods, instead wallowing in a middle ground where nothing is too shocking, considering the subject matter (that of a "crazed son of a Nazi doctor obsessed with trapping young women and slowly torturing them to death"). It's obvious that it's a Charles Band production from the budget, production values, and editing, though it's competently made overall (and good for some laughs in a number of spots). The on-set tensions  are more interesting than the finished product, as any film buff knows that Klaus Kinski was a singular actor and a true cinema madman.  

Ah, Re-Animator  (1985), a classic that never gets old. It's one of my  Top 100 Films . I first saw it at the way-too-young age of 12 or 13 and I've loved it ever since. I've seen (and owned) it on VHS, DVD, and Blu-ray. I've seen it badly projected in a conference room at  Rock And Shock , and now well-projected at the Luna Theater . I look forward to the eventual 4K UHD release (hopefully by Arrow Video ). Stuart Gordon 's splatter masterpiece has it all—camp, comedy, and gore galore, plus an indelible performance by Jeffrey Combs , who gets most of the memorable lines (and delivers them with aplomb). In my opinion, it belongs on everyone's Top 10 Horror list (it's on mine ). You can find my Stuart Gordon Feature Films Ranked list here . Herbert West:  I gave him  life .  Dr. Carl Hill:  It's rather like peeling a large orange.  Dr. Carl Hill:   Mr .  West! I suggest  you get yourself a pen!  "Cat dead. Details later?" Screa...