I’ve yet to meet anyone who has seen it all.
Every last horror movie. Sure, I mean we’ve all met someone who’s said, “Pshaw, just try and name a movie I haven’t seen!”
But, whether they admit it or not there are holes in their viewership.
Heck, we may even be that person.
More often than not, I have find myself hard pressed to discover something I haven’t seen before. So, I’ll cycle through my old favorites and maybe throw in an errant Netflix recommendation. However, that gets old.
Fast.
Because, believe you me, the amount of total biffs on Netflix are a plenty. The days of perusing the aisles at the video store are behind us and we find ourselves at a mental crossroads. What do I watch now? Where should I start?
Well, let me tell you, start with Hidden Horror.
This lovely, hefty book is the brainchild of Dr. AC, also known as Aaron Christensen. Hidden Horror is a collection of well-written, attention grabbing essays by 101 of the horror community’s most active, brightest and dedicated. It’s almost academic in it’s depth and attention to detail.
The book itself, roughly three hundred pages long, is no easy feat if you aren’t genuinely interested in learning about the accursed forgotten or overlooked. Chances are if you’re a diehard fan, you’ll have seen quite a few of these gems. However, I read this from cover to cover and found that even with films I had seen, I learned something new or was able to see it from someone else’s perspective.
That, in my humble opinion, is the most valuable quality of this book.
Each essay is steeped in personal experience and I found myself relating with the majority of the authors represented therein. I’m a fool for nostalgia and this book has buttloads of it. May I also add that some of these essays were profoundly moving and I found myself reading (and sometimes re-reading) for the authors individual take or experience; rather than why I should be drop everything and pop in a DVD. I found this unanticipated added side effect to be what pulled me in deeper to Hidden Horror.
The bulk of these flicks are predominantly “vintage.” Meaning there’s only a handful that are from the last decade or so. I attribute this to the age we’re living in (she said in a shaky old lady voice) and the ease of access we have to newer content. From a personal standpoint, I’m genuinely glad that most of the flicks they recommend are from the previous century as it’s harder to find information on some of these features. I find myself drawn to 1970s and 1980s horror, which this book is silly with.
Each essay lists the title, year of release, and, at the conclusion of each piece, a short bio about the individual author. One essay (generally) covers the plot, why the author feels a connection to the film, and why you need to see this movie ASAP. Or perhaps if you should see the film at all, because obviously not all 101 are going to be a snug fit for you. Make sure to take your tastes into account as well as time allowance when preparing for this endeavor.
Let me do a little math here. If each movie is roughly, let’s say, 90 minutes and you do that 101 times over, my god, that 9,090 minutes. Or 151.5 hours. Or 6.3125 solid days. Seeing as this estimate is only ballpark, it’s most likely more! That’s a serious load of movie recommendations!
What I’m saying is don’t feel pressured to watch everything immediately because that would be both ludicrous and wildly unhealthy, you silly git.
Now, the next step is reading the gash-dern thing. Looking at it… it’s clearly quite the undertaking. There’s little to no “filler” a.k.a. no dicking around to be found here. One way to read Hidden Horror is to…. well, just pick it up and read it from cover to cover. However, I felt the fashion in which I read it added greatly to my connection with the book. So, here’s my gift to you…
1. Read What You Know.
I found it easiest to begin with films I had already seen. I scanned the table of contents for my favorite flicks and jumped around from movie to movie. It was exciting to “meet” the authors with whom I already had similar interests. Often feeling like you’re on a one-sided conversation with a really close friend. After you’ve exhausted this approach I recommend that you…
2. Read Who You Know.
In addition to writers and editors from publications such as Rue Morgue Magazine and Horrorhound Magazine, there are a bevy of directors and other artists to be found within this lovely stack of paper. I dare you to NOT find someone you know in that table of contents! It can’t be done! And once you’ve gone down this avenue…
3. Read The Rest from Front to Back.
Just start at page one, baby. Fill in the gaps that were left over from step one and step two. As fun and insightful as the first two steps were, I found I learned the most from this portion of my reading. I was familiar enough with the book to throw myself to the sharks. Because of this I found that my movie-viewing (ahem) “hole”, as it were, lain with the forgotten silent horror films. I had no idea that this was the case and with much appreciation to Hidden Horror, I’m remedying that as you read this.
I just watched The Man Who Laughs for the very first time. Yes, I know, some of you are gasping at the previous statement, but, I’m human for Christ Sake! Somehow, it had never crossed my radar before, but, my god, I shudder to think of living the entirety of my life without ever seeing that movie. That’s why you need this book. It’s for the movies you don’t know you love yet.
4. BOOKMARK!
When I sat down to read Hidden Horror, I was on a packed plane to Philly, PA. I immersed myself into this world that reminded me of a convention in literature form. I would make mental notes of things I needed to watch or films I should revisit. However, the sheer amount of data pouring into my brain with every given page was immense and I found myself forgetting those initial mental notes.
So, on this flight, I bookmarked one movie. And then another. Then the inevitable, I ran out of bookmarks. Hence, I started using airline tickets, receipts, even unused bandaids (shut up, I was desperate!). All I’m saying is, have some scrap paper ready because, my love, you’re going to need it.
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| If your book doesn’t look like this when you’re done, you’re doing it wrong! |
All in all, Hidden Horror is the clear answer to the age old, “What do I watch next?” conundrum thus making it a perfect coffee table book for the genuine horror aficionado. Another added bonus is you can look for movies via country of origin or sub genre making the book itself much easier to utilize at a moments notice. So, get reading and fill those holes up!
Remember, when initially reading, it’s easy to get lost in this page turner of a book, so maybe start it when you have a day off, huh?
