In Stephen King’s book Danse Macabre, he talks about horror in books and movies and why we are so drawn to these themes and stories. It’s a great book by a master of the genre. He talks about many movies in the course of the book and there’s a big appendix at the back with some recomended viewing. This Hallowe’en I picked some movies from this list to watch and share with you.

Starring: Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, Amy Irving, Carrie Snodgrass, Andrew Stevens.

Director: Brian De Palma

An ex-CIA agent (Douglas) has to team up with a college girl (Irving) who has psychic powers when his son Robin is kidnapped by a rogue group within the government. This group plans to use the powers of teenagers as a weapon, but the fury that lives inside Robin might kill everybody if his dad can’t rescue him in time.

Based on a Book that feels so emblematic of the horror thrillers that were being churned out in the late 70’s, this has a solid director and cast which feels funny with this intense, out there plot. What is this Film and how did they get these names together to make it? Well, I guess that these kinds of plots and ideas were just super popular then.

I did enjoy this film. It’s a little slow compared to more recent horror or thrillers, but I liked the style and look of the whole film. It’s really of it’s time and I had never heard of this film before, so I wasn’t completely sure where it was going. It’s a bit like Carrie but less bloody and more governmenty, and has a lot in common with King’s story Firestarter that was made into a film with a young Drew Barrymore. You can see why King recommends this one then.

Not as colourful as some of the films this month, this one is more of a paranormal thriller than a all our horror, but I think the acting and direction is good and it’s a bit of a nostalgia trip. Worth watching just for the late 70’s hair and clothes.

Scale Of Scary: 4/10 More of a thriller than a horror, though there is some violence and supernatural themes.