Gory Indie Horror and a few Small Budget Chillers recommended by Author / Bone Tomahawk & Brawl in Cell Block 99 director S. Craig Zahler
List activity
11K views
• 36 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
- 60 titles
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarsNette DetroyBrian PaulinJoe OlsonKevin's wife passed away while giving birth to their first born child. He can not cope with the lose of of family and becomes obsessed with making contact with her by any means possible.Atmospheric. Creative. Great music. My favorite shot on video horror ever by the king of indie horror, Brian Paulin.
Certainly, the viewer needs to accept certain things that come with a micro budget labor of love like Fetus and undoubtedly some viewers want quickly-edited bloody action movies (28 Days Later and The Descent) rather than atmospheric isolated horror, which is my preference (eg. Rosemary's Baby, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Scarecrows, City of the Living Dead, Inside, Profondo Rosso, The Shout, Lost Highway). I imagine that if this piece (and Bone Sickness) were shot on film in the seventies and rediscovered now, they would be ubiquitously categorized as "essential cult."
((I don't have a problem with shot on video stuff (which this is), especially when the compositions and lightning are as thoughtful as they are here and i believe there is a some benefit to the extra visual information you get at 29.97 fps, a different level of reality, even if the image isn't quite as pretty. It's not better than film, but different with it's own quality.))
When comparing Fetus to Paulin's seemingly best known work, Bone Sickness, Fetus is altogether better realized-- the compositions, lighting, acting and effects are of a higher caliber-- but Fetus is less ambitious in terms of its scope. So Fetus is more professional and less flawed than Bone Sickness, but it does not reach as high or sustain its crescendo for nearly as long. I also appreciate the fact that Fetus is done in a completely serious way, rather than the jokey splatter of Jackson or Evil Dead II or Shaun of the Dead kind of stuff.
The music is strong, and in an older Giallo style, which helps the vibe. There are certainly some moments that confused me-- audio & effects ideas that didn't fully translate-- but this movie and Bone Sickness are the best shot on video horror movies I've seen, and they overachieve in so many departments (inventiveness, craziness, atmosphere, gore, etc.) that all the flaws are easily forgiven. - DirectorBrian PaulinStarsKevin BarbareGriff BrohmanBrian DeClercqKristen is caring for her Terminally ill husband who is suffering from a degenerative bone disease. With no cure available she turns to a friend to help find an alternative form of medicine that has unimaginable side effects.Another resourceful, atmospheric, creative, and beautifully scored indie splatterwork by Brian Paulin.
- DirectorMichael Todd SchneiderStarsBen TatarNikki McIntyreJustin AlvarezAlthough a bit ambiguous to outside viewers, the relationship between Mr. Ben and Sydney is quite healthy. They lead separate lives away from each other, able to devote personal time to their hobbies. Mr. Ben buries himself in his studies while Sydney goes out and parties, super-70's style. No worries, they always begin their day with a meal and end it with a prayer.Patient viewers will be rewarded: ...And I Helped is in no rush, which is part of its appeal, and it gets better as it progresses, heightening tension and atmosphere and overall interest.
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarsScott BaconRich GeorgeBrian PaulinA priest senses something is a change in the Earth. The gates are opening and Hell is being unleashed. Meanwhile a couple of friends are having gruesome dreams of demonic appearances and mayhem and wonder if these are just nightmares or a premonition.Note: This feature can be found as a bonus feature on the Saturn's Core Blu Ray release of At Dawn They Sleep. Reap of Evil shows the incredible ambition and creativity and atmosphere of Paulin's best works. The final 30+ minutes is a real tour de force.
- DirectorsFrançois GaillardChristophe RobinStarsAurélie GodefroyClara ValletAnna NaigeonTormented by erotic visions of her mysterious neighbour, Angela discovers the object of her desire brutally mutilated in her flat. Now, she can see the deranged killer's next victim. Can she escape from a violent destiny written in blood?Indebted to Argento & Fulci. Sharp looking and fun throughout.
- DirectorOlaf IttenbachStarsOlaf IttenbachAndrea ArbterAndré StryiTommy finds a cursed mirror and a diary in an attic in the new house they moved in. The mirror starts to give Tommy horrible and gruesome visions as his crush keeps rising from the dead.Sick and claustrophobic early Ittenbach. His best.
- DirectorOlaf IttenbachStarsBeate NeumeyerBernd MuggenthalerEllen FischerA young drug addict reads his little sister two macabre bedtime stories, one about a serial killer on a blind date, the other about a psychotic priest terrorizing his village.Hell = Creative Torture.
Has some dull stretches, but contains Ittenbach's finest seqences. - DirectorStephen BiroStarsEight The Chosen OneScott GabbeyJim Van BebberTwo women are abducted by a group of snuff filmmakers and brought into a Hellish nightmare of unmistakable brutality, viciousness and destruction that will leave every viewer shocked, amazed and awestruck.Deliberately paced vivisections are the meat of this nearly plotless gore exploration, which in quite a few ways tops the original Japanese Guinea Pig series whence it sprung. Although many will complain of the lack of dramatic content, this movie is a hideous spectacle that displays creativity in ways other than developing an interesting "plot" or "characters"...and these ways are for the most part exceedingly nasty. It is no small achievement that after nearly an hour of carnage, Biro, Koch, Bebber, and company manage plumb the most disturbing depths in the final gore sequences and epilogue.
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarBrian PaulinMorbid Tales is an anthology that Features the very first 3 short movies of Brian Paulin.
- DirectorKyle Edward BallStarsLucas PaulDali Rose TetreaultRoss PaulTwo children wake up in the middle of the night to find their father is missing, and all the windows and doors in their home have vanished.
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarsChristina AmaralJack AnthonyKevin BarbareThe story is about David Gates, a cryptozoologist who is hired to film his investigations. One of them being a mysterious town where all of it's inhabitants have vanished without a trace. David uncovers far more than he anticipated and puts his own life at risk. Afterwards David begins to feel the bizarre effects from the town within his own biology. Mean while he is sent by his investor to film an exorcism. Something that is completely outside of his expertise. Already suffering from unnatural symptoms, David, who is now reluctantly in the presence of pure evil, fears that multiple inhuman forces are tearing him apart from inside.Another atmospheric, creative and original gem by my favorite horror director of the 21st century, Brian Paulin. More of a slow build experience than his last three movies, so be patient with this one.
It contains stronger performances than in his previous outings (both Olsen & Paulin) and a stunning end sequence.
Like other Paulin movies, Cryptic Plasm is a DIY confluence Italian Horror (especially Fulci), the Guinea Pig series, Tetsuo: Iron man, anime, and 80s horror, but in the end, his approach and varied influences yields a very distinct art. Nothing else feels quite like a Brian Paulin movie...except other Brian Paulin movies.
Like Blood Pigs, Bone Sickness, and Fetus (which is my top favorite Paulin movie), Cryptic Plasm shows things that few micro budgeted movies would dare attempt and for me these achievements in scope and vision overwhelm any and all technical flaws ...and often enhance the atmosphere and personality of the piece.
Recommended to people who want to see distinct, homegrown, creative indie horror. - DirectorsSonny LagunaDavid LiljebladTommy WiklundStarsAndreas VaehiYohanna IdhaMax WallmoTwo cheerleaders hitchhike with two handsome boys, but soon they are captured by a family of violent Swedes.Flawed, but Laguna really knows how to stage and cut intense suspense set-pieces.
- DirectorsDoug UlrichAl DaragoStarsAl DaragoAlbert Darago IIITony Murphy Jr.A faceless storyteller relates three tales of terror: 1) An ancient evil necklace gradually takes possession of a man's soul in "Satan's Necklace;" 2) A guy goes off the deep end after discovering his wife's infidelity in "Sliced in Cold Blood;" and 3) A man becomes so obsessed with a video game that he can't stop playing it to the point that he eventually gets pulled into said game for real in "Level 21."
- DirectorsJohn PoloniaMark PoloniaTodd Michael SmithStarsJohn PoloniaMark PoloniaTodd Michael SmithThree brothers (one who is slow and another who is adopted) have disturbing and violent hallucinations while their mother is at work.A zenith achievement in the 'kids with a camcorder' horror sub-genre. (This can be found as a bonus feature on the Polonia Brothers' Splatter Beach, which I cannot recommend.) Hallucinations is an isolated, unsettling, creative, and unfiltered cabin fever exploration of morbidly-inclined youths.
- DirectorMarcus KochStarsDan EllisLillian McKinneyAndy WintonA man is imprisoned by a psychotic doctor who tortures him in increasingly gruesome ways in order to extract chemicals from his bloodstream. Along the way, he develops a relationship with a female prisoner.
- DirectorMarian DoraStarsCarsten FrankVictor BrandlTobias SickertAn internet advertisement placed by a man with a cannibalistic obsession brings yields a willing victim to serve up his own flesh in this dramatic account of the crime that shocked the world.The most disturbing picture on this list. A genuinely uncomfortable viewing experience that seems like some kind of confluence of Peter Greenaway aspirations and the gory leering of HG Lewis. Moody as hell, claustrophobic, and disgusting. Chances are, this isn't for you.
- DirectorDustin MillsStarsBrandon SalkilErin R. RyanAllison EganDr. Peter Poole has contracted cancer, so he decides to use himself as a guinea pig for a serum to cure the disease. But the serum turns out to have extremely nasty side effects and causes Peter to go lethally around the bend.This piece gets better and more uncomfortable as it progresses.
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarsTanya HennesyBrian PaulinRich GeorgeStephen and Ian are ruthless drug lords who are in the middle of a war with their rival Billy Rae Douglas. One night Stephen and Ian escort two girls home with them, who actually seem to be stranger than they are. The next morning they wake up and the girls are gone, and Stephen and Ian are not feeling so well and soon find out their lives have been changed forever. They find out that the girls were Angels that infected them with a vampire type virus. In exchange for immortality, Stephen and Ian along with the other hordes of Vampires, are to kill off the human race so that the Angels can take back what should have been theirs. The Vampires begin their slaughter until the Demon world steps in to put an end to the Angel's plans, for the Demons are satisfied with the way the three worlds co-exists.
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarsJoe OlsonRich GeorgeRichard CaronNinety nine percent of the world has been destroyed by a bio-chemical war. The survivors try to continue on by hunting and consuming the living dead.Another creative and gory fx showcase by the king of shot on video splatter, Brian Paulin.
- DirectorShin'ya TsukamotoStarsTomorô TaguchiKei FujiwaraNobu KanaokaA businessman accidentally kills The Metal Fetishist, who gets his revenge by slowly turning the man into a grotesque hybrid of flesh and rusty metal.Very creative, but the sum is an overload and less impacting than the parts. This experimental barrage is equal parts hentai anime, Eraserhead, and Kamen Rider and displays a lot of ingenuity.
- DirectorBrian PaulinStarsMorgan DesautelThomas HeiglYan KaosA childless couple streams an illicit medical procedure involving a donor's death, descending into the seedy underbelly of snuff films and disturbing online activities.
- DirectorDustin MillsStarsJessica CookErin R. RyanMandi MonroeMeticulously, a deranged masked murderer targets five beautiful women, intent on torturing them to death, one by one. The crazed psycho won't stop until they all suffer by his blade. Are the torturer and his prey connected in some way?A nasty slasher picture that gets much better as it progresses. Surprisingly well thought out storytelling.
- DirectorJames BellStarsLauren AbbottAmanda BellJames BellA guy struggling to find his place in life, starts his day looking for a job but finds the world he knew has regressed into a mess of confusion and the only one with the answers is too busy killing everyone.
- DirectorJames BellStarsAmanda BellJames BellZach HillSet in a surreal future where everyone is on drugs and doctors are giving them out in return for body parts. The plot follows a couple (James and Mae Bell) with a deformed drug addicted baby as they go out and slaughter people to get drugs.
- DirectorsJohn PoloniaMark PoloniaTodd Michael SmithStarsTodd Michael SmithJohn PoloniaMark PoloniaTwo young twins are sent to spend time at their aunt's farm. What nobody knows is that the aunt's handyman is a psycho serial killer who dismembers his victims and stores their body parts in the barn.A well paced, odd, and occasionally disorienting hunk of homegrown horror and depravity with more than a few distressing surprises.
