Who is the true "master of horror?"
07-14-2011, 10:18 AM
It's a title given to many different directors and a few writers; Alfred Hitchcock (master of suspense), Wes Craven (master of terror), George Romero...
It's far from self-explanatory though, and the title has a lot of "qualifiers" who don't exactly give a consistent body of work. If you had your pick, who would say is the best horror-helmer and why?
If going by "everyone," I'd be tempted to say Stephen King, because Stephen King has a consistency which I truly do not see anyone matching - Pet Sematary, Misery, the Shining, Carrie and Cujo all belong on a top-20 horror list in my mind. Not all the adaptations of his movies are faithful (especially not The Shining), but his work still lays the groundwork for them masterfully. Were it not for King, the directors of the aforementioned movies would not have such a solid or unsettling framework to go by.
If going by directors alone, it's honestly a lot tougher. To elaborate, I'd narrow my "master of horror" choices down to Dario Argento and John Carpenter, both of whom have produced what I'm tempted to say is a greater volume of "good" horror work than either Craven or Romero.
Still, what makes me hesitate is the fact that both directors are pretty blasted flawed to be considered a "master." I've stated in another thread Dario's problems with editing, effective music use and getting everything he can out of a story, yet still Suspiria was mesmerising in its use of atmosphere and Deep Red contained one of the most painful death scenes I can think of. Conversely, Carpenter has made at least three remarkably solid horror films (Halloween, The Thing, In the Mouth of Madness), yet those three, to me, do not quite equal the sum of Argento's parts.
In short, Carpenter is thorough in his directing, but in my opinion does not always achieve the "heights of fright" Dario Argento does. Conversely, Argento has big highs, and big lows; too often within the same films. And personally, I draw a blank concerning directors who can really challenge either one of them.
What does everyone else think? It doesn't have to be Carpenter or Argento, but who in general do YOU think is the top dog of horror writing or direction? And why do you think so?
It's far from self-explanatory though, and the title has a lot of "qualifiers" who don't exactly give a consistent body of work. If you had your pick, who would say is the best horror-helmer and why?
If going by "everyone," I'd be tempted to say Stephen King, because Stephen King has a consistency which I truly do not see anyone matching - Pet Sematary, Misery, the Shining, Carrie and Cujo all belong on a top-20 horror list in my mind. Not all the adaptations of his movies are faithful (especially not The Shining), but his work still lays the groundwork for them masterfully. Were it not for King, the directors of the aforementioned movies would not have such a solid or unsettling framework to go by.
If going by directors alone, it's honestly a lot tougher. To elaborate, I'd narrow my "master of horror" choices down to Dario Argento and John Carpenter, both of whom have produced what I'm tempted to say is a greater volume of "good" horror work than either Craven or Romero.
Still, what makes me hesitate is the fact that both directors are pretty blasted flawed to be considered a "master." I've stated in another thread Dario's problems with editing, effective music use and getting everything he can out of a story, yet still Suspiria was mesmerising in its use of atmosphere and Deep Red contained one of the most painful death scenes I can think of. Conversely, Carpenter has made at least three remarkably solid horror films (Halloween, The Thing, In the Mouth of Madness), yet those three, to me, do not quite equal the sum of Argento's parts.
In short, Carpenter is thorough in his directing, but in my opinion does not always achieve the "heights of fright" Dario Argento does. Conversely, Argento has big highs, and big lows; too often within the same films. And personally, I draw a blank concerning directors who can really challenge either one of them.
What does everyone else think? It doesn't have to be Carpenter or Argento, but who in general do YOU think is the top dog of horror writing or direction? And why do you think so?
âThe Fright Night remake is a film which taps into the audienceâs deepest rooted fears, such as those of vampires throwing motorcycles at them. I dread the thought of a vampire throwing a refrigerator or a deskjet printer or... Iâd better stop before I give myself nightmaresâ
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