Classic B&W Horror Movies

bacchanalian

west said:

" Keep watching the skies ....! "

west said:

"Klaatu barada nikto " ....

Two of my very favourites but would claim them for SciFi fans.

Cols

I’ll go for the classics of the Bela Lugosi Dracula, the Boris Karloff Frankenstein and the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

RustySpanner

Portmanteau horror stunner "Dead of Night" - lost none of it's impact.  Helped by a fantastic cast and one of the best wraparound stories ever in a portmanteau film.

Indeed. 

It's a work of genius and one of my favourite films. 

Halfway House is much less scary, but  has it's moments. 

A great double bill, but save Dead of Night for last!

LordBucketHead

Black & white comedy reading of the will movie 'Dark and Stormy Night' (2009 so a bit of a cheat but I enjoyed it and it's 6.6 on imdb)

thermionic

When I was about 12 my friend had a big hardcover book about these kind of ,legendary films, and we were obsessed with them for a while… I really should search some of them out to watch.

Philly_Q

Ooh you buggers, you've said lots of the good ones already....

The Seventh Victim
The Old Dark House
Carnival of Souls
Black Sunday
Les Diaboliques
Eyes Without a Face
Repulsion
The Thing from Another World

Kittyfrisk

^ Not many good movie versions, but I'd say MR. James ''Oh, Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad" is a tie for his best 

LordBucketHead

Philly_Q said:

Ooh you buggers, you've said lots of the good ones already....

The Seventh Victim
The Old Dark House
Carnival of Souls
Black Sunday
Les Diaboliques
Eyes Without a Face

'The Old Dark House' is an old favourite of mine and I'm now watching it again. 1932 and it's as fresh as paint. Ninety years old and the actors in those days could run rings round half the insipid luvvies of today (look out for Liam Gallagher as the butler)

darthed1981

LordBucketHead said:

'Whistle And I'll Come To You' (1968) - One of the Ghost Stories For Christmas broadcasts. The wonderful Michael Hordern is simply mesmerising for me in this role (look for the actual video rather than the book reading audio). 

Indeed brilliant!

Psa - you can currently get the entire first batch of "Ghost Stories For Christmas" including this one on Amazon Prime video for £4.99 if a prime member.

darthed1981

Redlester said:
On MR James- never seen Night of the Demon. Isn't it based on 'Casting the Runes'? That's probably his finest story IMO, at least in terms of pure literary construction. 

Yes it sure is, a brilliant adaptation of it as well.

LordBucketHead

darthed1981 said:

LordBucketHead said:

'Whistle And I'll Come To You' (1968) - One of the Ghost Stories For Christmas broadcasts. The wonderful Michael Hordern is simply mesmerising for me in this role (look for the actual video rather than the book reading audio). 

Indeed brilliant!

Psa - you can currently get the entire first batch of "Ghost Stories For Christmas" including this one on Amazon Prime video for £4.99 if a prime member.

I bought the box set one Christmas many years ago. Such a beautiful step back in time. Michael Hordern was level genius actor. Absolutely wonderful.  

Greatape

A little later, perhaps, but I'm a sucker for Hammer. A seminal movie for me is 'Captain Kronos, Vampire Hunter.' Vampires, sword fights and Caroline Munro. Young me: sold. 

In the B&W era, I have a soft spot for the Quatermass movies. Alien peril versus British grit. And cups of tea. 

Philly_Q

After all this chat I'm going to watch Night of the Demon tonight.

Now should I watch Night or Curse?  The pre-release version or theatrical version?  And in 1.75:1 or 1.66:1?  Too many choices...

crosstownvamp

Isn't the Casting of the Runes loosely based on Crowley?

I first saw it in an isolated 15th century house in the countryside - scary!

I'll add the 1926 Phantom of the Opera for three things - the short but spectacular colour sequence of the phantom coming down the stairs during the masked ball. Lon Chaney's makeup, which he designed himself - and his expressions and poses while on the statue overlooking the lovers.

Kittyfrisk

^  Check your pockets for bits of parchment before going to bed...  

LastMantra

Freaks? 

darthed1981

Philly_Q said:

After all this chat I'm going to watch Night of the Demon tonight.

Now should I watch Night or Curse?  The pre-release version or theatrical version?  And in 1.75:1 or 1.66:1?  Too many choices...

The longer version of Night definitely, the extra scenes are important if I recall correctly.

Bet you won't be letting people hand you paper for days...

boogieman

Les Diaboliques. Had a young teenage me shitting myself, especially the bath scene. 

The Boris Karloff Frankenstein films are the definitive versions for me. 

I love most of the BBC MR James Xmas ghost stories. I don’t think it’s in b&w but The treasure of Abbot Thomas is my favourite. Really atmospheric. 

JezWynd

west said:

The innocents ...( deborah  kerr and peter wyngarde)  based on  henry james turn of the screw ....

also , wyngardes  night of the eagle .... 

for fun ....  The ghost train  .....

The Innocents has great cinematography. The scene where the governess first sees the woman across the lake is very unsettling - the film takes on a grainy dense look and the same effect is used again when she sees the man at the top of the tower. It’s as if she’s seeing into another world, so different to the pristine b&w of the remainder of the picture. IIRC, I think Nic Roeg shot that film using filters he borrowed from Jack Cardiff.

Stratavarious

Quatermass Experiment,,,  perfect horror/sci-if blend.