World Cinema; Is Australian Horror The Best?

Like many countries across the world, Australia has seen a resurgence of horror films in the past decade, with a range of titles now reaching us from down under. As with any country, these vary in quality somewhat but there are some gems to be found if you're a dedicated horror fan. I've chosen three of my favourite Australian horror films to determine whether the country that also gave us Kylie and Neighbours could really be the best at horror worldwide. My first choice is...

The Loved Ones (2009)

 

World Cinema; Is Japanese Horror The Best?

Japan has a long history of disturbing and influential horror films, ever since the release of silent film 'A Page of Madness' back in 1926. I was lucky enough to see this innovative film at university but for the majority of film fans, it is the more recent horrors that have catapulted Japan to the forefront of terrifying world cinema. The past decade has seen the most popular of these films copied and parodied to a ridiculous extent so I think it is worth taking a look back at the originals, to see what makes them classics of the genre. In this post, I have chosen my three favourite Japanese horror films to try and determine whether Japanese horror really is the best. Obviously, not every fan favourite could make it onto such a short list so some popular releases like 'The Grudge' and 'Pulse' might be notably absent to some. My apologies. But let's see if you agree with my three choices...

Ring (1998)

The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris

When it comes to scares in a book, it takes more than a few ghosts rattling round in a haunted house to scare me. In fact, very few books have ever sent chills down my spine and of the small cluster that have only one had me rooted to the spot with fear and that was Thomas Harris' The Silence of the Lambs.

World Cinema; Is Spanish Horror The Best?

From mathematical chillers like 'Fermat's Room' and the sci-fi terror of 'Timecrimes', to even the fantastical world of 'Pan's Labyrinth', Spain has produced some of the most exciting and unusual horror films of the past decade. These films take ideas from a range of other genres, all in an attempt to scare the hell out of us and boy do they succeed! In this post, I have chosen my three favourite Spanish horror films to try and determine whether Spanish horror really is the best. Let's see if you agree... 

Rec (2007)

Whatever Happened To RnB? - TLC

Remember when ‘Unbreak My Heart’ ruled the charts and Lil Kim was the biggest thing in female rap? In this weekly feature, I’m going to take a look back at some of the best RnB artists of yesteryear, sharing their signature videos and underrated hits, as well as looking at what they’re up to nowadays.

Previous posts have focussed on Cassie, Ciara, Missy Elliott, Brandy and Monica. Today, the focus is on TLC, one of the biggest RnB groups of all time.

Hey TLC!

World Cinema; Is Korean Horror The Best?

Asian horror gained a huge following after the success of 'Ringu' back in the early 2000s, but in more recent years, Korea has overtaken Japan in the horror stakes, with a number of darkly innovative films making their mark on world cinema. Korean cinema is no longer the 'poor relation' of Japanese film and has become hugely successful in its own right, with a distinctive national identity all of its own. But is Korean horror the best worldwide? Here are three films that I've handpicked to prove that Korean horror is where it's at!

A Tale of Two Sisters (2003)

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

 

Shirley Jackson's classic haunted house story is one of my personal favourite books ever, I love a good ghost story and this is a very good one. Dr Montague, a scientist who's obsessed with ghosts as I am, manages to convince four people to come and spend the summer in a big old house that he's rented to study the existence of psychic disturbances. Oh and did I mention that the house is haunted? Cause it totally is. A simple set up to a book that is widely regarded as one of the best, if not the best, haunted house book ever written and if you don't believe, just ask Mr. Stephen King, go on ask him.