Trick or Treat? Have them both as we approach Halloween. Get a treat with a blast from the past. Turn the lights down and enjoy Michael Jackson's all time killer hit "Thriller". Later, take a stroll down memory lane and revisit some of the most memorable movie characters who exude evil and create fear in movie fans. Here are just a few.
For me, Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho" (1960) is the granddaddy of them all. The baby-faced killer has unresolved mommy issues. Driven over the edge with jealousy after his widowed mother takes a lover, Bates murders both of them with strychnine. He forges a suicide note to make it look like Norma killed her lover and then herself. After a brief hospitalization for shock, he develops dissociative identity disorder, assuming her personality to repress her death and escape the guilt of murdering her. He inherits his mother's house — where he keeps her corpse — and the family motel in fictional Fairvale, California. The "mother" flies into violent rages whenever "Norman" feels attracted to a woman. The shower scene made Hollywood history and is worth a second look for Halloween.
When a girl is possed by a mysterious entity, her mother seeks the help to save her daughter. The 1973 horror film "The Exorcist" deals with the demonic possession of the young girl and her mother's desperate attempts to win back her daughter through an exorcism conducted by two priests. The film has had a significant influence on popular culture. It was named the scariest film of all time by Entertainment Weekly and Movies.com and by viewers of AMC in 2006, and was No. 3 on Bravo's 100 Scariest Movie Moments.
Leatherface is the main character in "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" horror-film series and its spin-offs. He wears masks made of human skin (hence his name) and engages in murder and cannibalism alongside his inbred family. He is considered by many to be one of the first major slasher film villains alongside Michael Myers and Norman Bates. Leatherface first appeared in the first film in the series (1974) and in its four subsequent continuations and remakes. Wisconsin killer Ed Gein, who wore a mask made of human skin, was reportedly the inspiration for the character.
Hannibal Lecter appeared on screen for just 16 minutes of the 118 minute run time of "Silence of the Lambs". Yet, this evil madman terrified fans with intimidation, intellegence and his hunger for human flesh. Add the creepy voice and another iconic monster was born.
In the 1976 American/British suspense horror film "The Omen", an American ambassador (Gregory Peck) learns to his horror that his son is actually the literal Antichrist. The movie was remade by Richard Donner 2006. The films received mixed reviews, but hangs around to thrill and chill its viewers.
Want more films for Fright Night? Try Rosemary's Baby (1968), The Shining (1980) and Poltergeist (1982). Did I miss your favorite? Give me a holler.
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